State Press Contests Winners 2015 Section

Transcription

October 2015
Special Section
UT, TN Press Association
announce winners of 75th
annual newspaper contest
KNOXVILLE — Newspaper writers, editors, designers and publishers won
top awards on July 16 in the Tennessee Press Association’s 2015 newspaper
contest, co-sponsored by the University of Tennessee. The event was held in
conjunction with the press association’s summer convention held this year
in Knoxville.
This year also marked the 75th anniversary of the contest, which began
in 1940.
“Seventy-five years is an impressive milestone in UT’s partnership with
the Tennessee Press Association, and one I’m proud to celebrate,” said UT
System President Joe DiPietro. “Our partnership is successful because of
our mutual commitment to accountability – the University in fulfilling its
mission for the benefit of all Tennesseans every day, and the Tennessee
press in letting the public know how UT is performing in that regard. I’m
grateful that UT is able to work with TPA and I look forward to growing our
partnership in the future.”
The Chattanooga Times Free Press, the Jackson Sun, Southern Standard
(McMinnville), the Wilson Post (Lebanon), Independent Herald (Oneida)
and the Portland Leader won the top General Excellence awards at the
association’s ceremony. General excellence honors are based on total points
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See AWARDS, Page 2
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Photo by Nick Myers •UT Photographer
Some of the winners in the 2015 State Press Contest gathered for a group photo. On the
front row, from left, are: Buzz Trexler, The Daily Times, Maryville; Eric Miller, Robertson
County Times, Springfield; Susan Campbell, The Tullahoma News; Duay O’Neil, Newport
Plain Talk; Jessica Cross, The Advocate & Democrat, Sweetwater; Shirley Nanney, Carroll
County News Leader, Huntingdon; Tracy Wolfe, Grainger Today, Bean Station; Patricia Zechman, Southern Standard, McMinnville; Jack McElroy, Knoxville News Sentinel and Sonya
Thompson, The Portland Leader.
On the middle row:, from left, are: John M. Jones Jr., The Greeneville Sun; Tommy Campbell,
Rogersville Review; Eddie West, Carthage Courier; Zach Birdsong, The Tullahoma News;
Jennifer Willis, The States-Graphic, Brownsville; Heather Mullinex, Crossville Chronicle;
James Webb, Chester County Independent, Henderson; Saralyn Norkus, Christy Armstrong
and Rick Norton, Cleveland Daily Banner; Chris Vass, Chattanooga Times Free Press; and
Abby Morris-Frye, Elizabethton Star.
On the back row, from left, are: Jason Reynolds, Shelbyville Times-Gazette; Greg Moses,
The Daily Post-Athenian, Athens; Jared Felkins, The Lebanon Democrat; George Coleman,
Herald & Tribune, Jonesborough; Jeremy Nash, News-Herald, Lenoir City; Dale Gentry, The
Standard Banner, Jefferson City; Josh Cross, Gallatin News-Examiner; Steve Coffman, The
Jackson Sun; Chris Smith, The Tennessean, Nashville and Keith Whitson, The Erwin Record.
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Page 2 • State Press Contest Awards
AWARDS, from Page 1
accumulated for awards in five
circulation categories.
This marks the sixth year in
a row the Jackson Sun has won
the general excellence award, and
the second year in a row that the
Chattanooga Times Free Press has
won the general excellence award in
its category.
The Southern Standard (McMinnville) took home the general
excellence award for its circulation
category, marking the 11th time
the newspaper has won either the
sweepstakes award (forerunner of
the general excellence) or general
excellence award.
Independent Herald and the
Portland Leader shared the general
excellence award in their circulation
category.
Other awards highlights:
• The Commercial Appeal
(Memphis) won nine first-place
awards and the Knoxville
News Sentinel won eight firstplace awards in the category of
newspapers with a combined
weekly circulation of more
than 200,000.
• Jackson Sun received nine firstplace awards in the category of
newspapers with a combined
weekly circulation between
50,001 and 200,000.
• Independent Herald captured
seven first-place awards in the
category of newspapers with a
combined weekly circulation of
5,000 or less.
The university’s Edward J. Meeman Foundation honored newspapers for their accomplishments in
editorial writing and public service
journalism with $250 awards in the
categories of editorials, best single
editorial and public service.
Newspapers receiving Meeman
awards:
• Independent Herald (Oneida), The Rogersville Review,
The Lebanon Democrat, The
Leaf-Chronicle (Clarksville)
and Knoxville News Sentinel,
editorials
• Carthage Courier, The Wilson
Post (Lebanon), The Mountain
Press (Sevierville), Cleveland
Daily Banner and News Sentinel, best single editorial
• Grainger Today (Bean Station),
The Wilson Post, Shelbyville
Times-Gazette, the Jackson
Sun and the Tennessean (Nashville), public service
The foundation was established
in 1968 at UT to fund the contests,
provide professional critiques of
journalists’ work, and support journalism students and faculty.
The partnership between UT and
TPA began in 1940 with the annual
press contests, a joint venture to
recognize the best efforts of newspapers across Tennessee.
In 1966, UT and TPA established
Awards Dinner Facts
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•
•
•
159 registrants
134 registrants from 51 newspapers
57 registrants from 21 dailies
77 registrants from 30 non-dailies
15 registrants from 6 associate members
Paper with the most registrants:
Carroll County News Leader, with 8
Contests
•
•
•
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1,409 entries from 70 newspapers
854 entries from 47 non-dailies
555 entries from 23 dailies
Most entered category: Best Single Feature,
with 116 entries
• 542 awards presented
• Paper with the most awards: Chattanooga
Times Free Press, with 31
• Paper with the most first place awards: (a
tie with 9 each) The Commercial Appeal,
Memphis and The Jackson Sun
Photo by Elenora E. Edwards
From left, Buzz Trexler with the The Daily Times (Maryville); Adam Yoemans with The Associated Press; John M. Jones Jr.
with The Greeneville Sun; and his wife, Helena Z. Jones, visit following the awards presentation.
the Tennessee Newspaper Hall of
Fame, hosted in the university’s
Communications Building. This
year, the redesigned hall of fame
debuted at UT, with an Associated
Press news ticker and touchscreen
technology that features the honorees.
The Alabama Press Association
judged a total of 1,409 entries from
70 of TPA’s 121 member newspapers.
The Tennessee Press Association
thanks the following:
• UT President Dr. Joe DiPietro
• The University of Tennessee Office of Communications and
Marketing and UT staff members Dr. Tonjanita Johnson, Charles
Primm, Karen Simsen, Amy Blakely, Erica Jenkins, Beth Gladden,
David Goddard, Tyra Haag, Nick Myers and Gina Stafford.
We are grateful for the excellent relationship that has
existed for 75 years, since 1940. UT has participated in the
implementing of the UT-TPA State Press Contests and has provided plaques and certificates and assisted in various
other facets of the awards event.
• Terri Likens, news editor of the Chattanooga Times Free Press,
2014-15 Contests Committee chairman
• Members of the 2014-15 TPA Contests Committee for their contributions, guidance and support.
State Press Contest Awards • Page 3
Presenting the 2015 winners!
Make-Up and
Appearance
5. The Daily Post-Athenian,
Athens
Staff
Group I
1. Independent Herald
Oneida
Staff
2. Memphis Business Journal
Lee Swets
3. The Erwin Record
Keith Whitson, Keeli Parkey,
David Sheets, Curtis Carden,
Damaris Higgins
4. The Portland Leader
Laura Purcell, Joel Durbin,
Michelle Montes, John Shelton,
Richard Swihart
5. The Leader, Covington
Echo Day, Jeff Ireland
Group II
1. The Wilson Post, Lebanon
Zack Owensby, Tommy Bryan,
Dallus Whitfield, Mary Anne Ferrell, Connie Esh, Sabrina Garrett,
Laurie Everett, Ray Pope, Brian
Harville, Becky Andrews, Ray
Pope, Ken Beck
Group IV
1. Bristol Herald Courier
Staff
2. The Jackson Sun
Staff
3. The Daily Times, Maryville
Staff
4. Johnson City Press
Don Armstrong, Brian Reese
5. The Greeneville Sun
Staff
Group V
2. Chattanooga Times Free
Press
Staff
3. Knoxville News Sentinel
Staff
Local Features
Group I
Sonya Thompson, Bonnie
Fussell, Holly Tong
Judges’ Comments: Sonya
Thompson’s feature had a lot of
pop in every way! A fun read!
2. Carthage Courier
Ken Beck, Scott Winfree, Jennifer Bush
1. The Commercial Appeal,
Memphis
Kim Coleman
3. The Tomahawk,
Mountain City
Angie Gambill
Judges’ Comments: Well designed,
well planned and well executed.
4. Hamilton County Herald,
Chattanooga
David Laprad, Karen Dunphy
Ed Arnold, Michael Sheffield,
Group II
1. The Standard Banner,
Jefferson City
Dave Gentry, Steve Marion,
Katey Hopkins, Dale Gentry
Judges’ Comments: These factual, descriptive, narrative and
explanatory stories are packaged
effectively.
5. The Advocate & Democrat,
Sweetwater
Jessica Cross
Group III
1. Shelbyville Times-Gazette
Jason Reynolds, Brian Mosely
2. Southern Standard,
McMinnville
James Clark, Jeffery Simmons
3. The Newport Plain Talk
Duay O’Neil
2. Gallatin News Examiner
Jennifer Easton, Dessislava
Yankova
4. The Lebanon Democrat
Matt Masters, Sara McManamy-Johnson, Kimberly Jordan
Becky Andrews, Ken Beck, Ray
Pope, Laurie Everett, Sabrina
Garrett, Zack Owensby, Connie
Esh
5. The Tullahoma News
Kali Bolle, Marian Galbraith
4. Robertson County Times,
Springfield
Nicole Young, Cheri Reeves
Group IV
See WINNERS, Page 5
Tennessean’s Lee wins AP Photo of the Year 2014
2. News-Herald, Lenoir City
Steve Meadows
Jefferson City
Kim Cook, Dale Gentry, Paul
Young, Ray Seabolt, Gary Fowler
Cherish Matthews, Tena Lee,
Dessislava Yankova, Josh Cross,
Jennifer Easton, Chris Brooks,
Craig Harris, Tracie Keeton
5. The Rogersville Review
Joel Spears, Jim Beller, Wade
Littleton, Tommy Campbell,
Freda Turbyfill, Christy Alvis
Group III
1. Elizabethton Star
Staff
Carol Spray, Mary Cook, David
Melson
Jared Felkins, Sara McManamy-Johnson, Mark Rodgers,
Kimberly Jordan, Andy Reed,
Xavier Smith
Susan Campbell, Ryan
Sandmeyer
Chris Smith accepted the 2014 Associated Press Photo of the Year award
on the behalf of Jae Lee with The Tennessean (Nashville) from Adam
Yeomans, AP regional director of the South.
Guide to First Place Winners’ Entries
General Excellence
IV. Cleveland Daily Banner
I. (a tie) Independent
Herald (Oneida) and
The Portland Leader
“A line that politics should never
cross”
Rick Norton
Page 12
II. The Wilson Post, Lebanon
V. Knoxville News Sentinel
III. Southern Standard
(McMinnville)
IV. The Jackson Sun
V. Chattanooga Times Free
Press
Pages 14-15
Make-Up & Appearance
I. Independent Herald,
Oneida
II. The Wilson Post, Lebanon
III. Elizabethton Star
IV. Bristol Herald Courier
V. The Commercial Appeal,
Memphis
Pages 16-17
“Attorney general’s opinions
shouldn’t have force of law”
Staff
Page 13
* Meeman Award Winners
Page 6
II. Robertson County Times,
Springfield
“Community mourns family’s
loss”
Phil Stauder
Page 7
(McMinnville)
Best Personal Humor
Column
“At least Elvis never twerked”
Larry Woody
Page 20
II. The Wilson Post (Lebanon)
“It could be worse, right?”
Becky Andrews
“Smyrna couple said OK after
roof blown off”
Helen Comer
Page 9
V. The Tennessean
(Nashville)
“An Enduring Symbol Restoration of historic structure
embodies the vision of Smith
County’s very own & renowned
world leader.”
Eddie West
Page 8
“Athens is only dangerous if
you’re clumsy”
Greg Moses
Page 22
“small world: Party of Five”
Allison Adams
“What’s left to say?”
Zach Owensby
V. The Commercial Appeal
(Memphis)
Page 10
III. The Mountain Press
(Sevierville)
“Freedom of Information axed:
Feds promote openness from
behind a wall”
Jason Davis
Page 11
Best Feature Photograph
I. The Tomahawk
(Mountain City)
“Okra Stufato? Leeks on pizza?
There’s no accounting for taste”
David Williams
Page 23
Best News Photograph
I. Portland Leader
“The Greatest Generation”
“Last One Standing”
Brad Vest, Kim Coleman, Kyra
Cross, John Sale
Page 21
“Stingray Surge”
Sonya Thompson
Page 22
II. Robertson County Times
(Springfield)
“Signature Win”
Phil Stauder
“Every minute counts”
Desslslava Yankova
Page 19
III. Elizabethton Star
“‘Happy law’ on Adoption Day
Bryce Phillips
Page 19
IV. Herald-Citizen
(Cookeville)
II. The Rogersville Review
“Dora® cookies and a little girl”
Tommy Campbell
Page 25
III. The Daily Post-Athenian
“Our nonprofits give happy
endings to sad beginnings”
Greg Moses
Page 25
IV. Cleveland Daily Banner
“A little pale girl gives a lesson
in life”
Rick Norton
Page 26
V. Knoxville News Sentinel
“‘Cats take field for first scrimmage”
Zach Birdsong
Page 22
IV. The Daily Times
(Maryville)
“RIP: The soul of Pittman Center”
Sam Venable
Page 27
Headline Writing
I. Pulaski Citizen
Tracy Ayers, Mark Mize
Page 23
II. Gallatin News Examiner
Page 24
Page 22
“10 for 10”
Joy Kimbrough
Page 18
Page 23
II. The Wilson Post (Lebanon)
Page 10
“Standoff”
Angie Gambill
IV. The Greeneville Sun
(Memphis)
III. The Tullahoma News
“The Year in Pictures”
John Partipilo
III. The Daily Post-Athenian
I. Carthage Courier
Page 20
I. The Portland Leader
IV. The Daily News Journal
(Murfreesboro)
I. Cannon Courier
Walmart”
Steve Oden
“Snowy Fall”
Ty Kernea
Best Sports Photograph
“Life saving attempt”
James Clark
Page 8
Page 21
Best Single Editorial*
Sonya Thompson
(Memphis)
“24 Hours of Hoop City”
Mark Weber, Mike Brown,
Nikki Boertman, Kyle Veazey,
Michael Cohen, Kim Coleman, John Sale, Adam Lau
Page 24
Best Personal Column
I. Independent Herald
(Oneida)
“Ministering to the forlorn at
II. The Standard Banner
(Jefferson City)
David Gentry, Dale Gentry
(McMinnville)
Seth Wright, James Clark
IV. The Jackson Sun
Brandon Shields, David
Thomas
V. The Tennessean
(Nashville)
Karen Grigsby
Page 28
Past UT-TPA State Press Contests Sweepstakes and General Excellence Winners
From TPA Archives
A points-based Sweepstakes
Award was established in 1999.
In 2006 the category of General
Excellence became a points-based
award and replaced the Sweepstakes Award. Points are assigned
as follows: first place (5 points),
second place (4 points), third place
(3 points), fourth place (2 points),
fifth place (1 point).
The newspaper in each of the
five contests divisions (Group One,
Group Two, Group Three, Group
Four and Group Five) with the highest total points in its group receives
the General Excellence Award.
1999 Sweepstakes Award
Winners
Group One – Chester County
Independent, Henderson
Group Two – The Review Appeal,
Franklin
Group Three – The Daily News
Journal, Murfreesboro
Group Four – The Tennessean,
Nashville
Winners
Group Two – Southern Standard,
McMinnville
Nashville
Winners
Group One – The Rutherford
Courier, Smyrna
McMinnville
Group Three – The Leaf-Chronicle, Clarksville
Nashville
Winners
McMinnville
See PAST WINNERS, Page 25
WINNERS, from Page 3
Staff
Allison Adams, Lisa Warren,
Ken Little, Kathy Knight, Betty
Fletcher
3. Cleveland Daily Banner
Rick Norton, Saralyn Norkus,
Christy Armstrong, William
Wright
4. The Jackson Sun
Staff
Joe Tennis
Group V
Kristi Nelson, Amy Smotherman Burgess, Michael Patrick
3. Carroll County News-Leader,
Huntingdon
Ron Park
4. Chester County Independent, Henderson
James A. Webb
5. The Courier News, Clinton
Ken Leinart
Group II
Sweetwater
Jessica Cross
Judges’ Comments: The writer’s
depth of research put this piece
head and shoulders above the
others.
Jefferson City
Steve Marion
Abby Morris-Frye
Sadie Fowler
Group IV
1. The Jackson Sun
Brandon Shields
2. The Jackson Sun
Nichole Manna
Joe Tennis
Melanie Tucker
Steve Wildsmith
Group V
Judges’ Comments: Nice work.
Proud to be a journalist.
3. The Elk Valley Times,
Fayetteville
Paul Henry
Memphis
Tom Charlier
Press
Staff
Ken Beck
Press
Joan Garrett McClane
Best Single Feature
Group I
Chattanooga
David Laprad
5. Overton County News, Livingston
Lyndon Johnson
Group III
1. The Mountain Press, Sevierville
Jason Davis
Judges’ Comments: Wonderful
descriptive story of walking a day
in someone else’s shoes.
2. The Paris Post-Intelligencer
Ken Walker
2. Carthage Courier
Ken Beck, Jennifer Bush
3. Crossville Chronicle
Heather Mullinix
Kristi Nelson, Adam Lau, Amy
Smotherman Burgess
Press
Kate Harrison Belz
5. The Tennessean
Jessica Bliss
Community Lifestyles
Group I
1. The Erwin Record
David Sheets, Damaris Higgins,
Curtis Carden, Schae Bowman
Judges’ Comments: Beautifully
done! Great layout and design,
nice illustrations, interesting
articles.
2. Pulaski Citizen
Margaret Campbell, Dan Watson, Cary Jane Malone
3. Herald & Tribune,
Jonesborough
Lisa Whaley, Karen Sells,
Meghan McCoy, Jeanne Cope,
Linda Poland, Charlie Mauk,
Lynn Richardson, Amy Yeary
Holmes, Don Graham, Ted
Obrecht
Dr. Tonjanita Johnson, vice president for communications and marketing of the University of Tennessee, addressed the attendees before the
awards were presented about the relationship between TPA and UT.
Huntingdon
Shirley Nanney, Ron Park,
Karen Weathers
5. Grainger Today, Bean Station
Tracey Wolfe
UT System President Joe DiPietro talks about the 75-year relationship
between The University of Tennessee and the Tennessee Press
Association before the awards were presented.
Group II
Ken Beck, Zack Owensby,
Becky Andrews, Sabrina Garrett,
Brian Harville, Ray Pope
Tommy Campbell, Joel Spears,
Jim Beller, Cindy Rooy, Rodney Ferrell, Mae Baker, Bobby
Vaughn, Donna Lawson, Stacey
Barton
3. Independent Appeal, Selmer
Sandy Whitaker, Amanda
Rickman
Staff
Fayetteville
Lucy Williams, Sandy Williams,
Paul Henry, Laurie Pearson
Group III
Staff
Jared Felkins, Kimberly Jordan, Pam Wingett, Bonnie Bucy
Missy Wattenbarger
Sadie Fowler, Jason Reynolds,
Brian Mosely, Jim Davis, Derrick
Hill, Sherry Miller, Doug Dezotell
Athens
Greg Moses
Group IV
1. The Jackson Sun
Staff
2. Herald-Citizen, Cookeville
Don Foy, Megan Trotter, Laura
Militana
Joe Tennis, Jan Patrick, Tom
Netherland, Mary Dutton, Hetty
Canter, Fran Stanchi, Allison
Castle, Jerry Shell
Staff, Mike Murphy, Kelly Story
Velma Southerland, Kathy
Knight
Group V
Memphis
David Boyd, Ashley Kump,
Matt Woo, Courtney Sedlacek,
Donna Bauer, Jason Terrell
Press
Staff
Staff
Best Sports Writing
Group I
1. Independent Herald, Oneida
Ben Garrett
Judges’ Comments: Very well
written. Informative, concise and
articulate. The writing helped tell
the stories in the best way possible
See WINNERS, Page 6
First place award
Best News
Photograph
Group I
Sonya Thompson – The Portland Leader
Judges’ Comments: Excellent writing. Kept this judge very engaged
in stories.
Sweetwater
Jonathan Herrmann
Craig Harris, Chris Brooks,
Cecil Joyce
Jefferson City
Dave Gentry
Group III
McMinnville
Jeffery Simmons, James Clark
2. Union City Daily Messenger
Mike Hutchens
Chris Siers
Seth Butler
5. The Mountain Press,
Sevierville
Christopher James
Group IV
Joe Avento, Doug Fritz, Jeff
Birchfield, Trey Williams
Judges’ Comments: Great entry.
Well rounded reporting and
writing.
2. The Jackson Sun
Craig Thomas, Brandon
Shields, Josh Lemons
3. The Daily Herald, Columbia
James Bennett
Grant Ramey, Marcus Fitzsimmons, Melanie Tucker, Dargan
Southard
Jim Sacco, Allen Gregory,
Nate Hubbard, Tim Hayes,
George Stone
Group V
and the stories were varied. Great
coverage.
Curtis Marlin, Rich Cook
3. Dresden Enterprise
Kenneth Coker
4. The Ashland City Times
Randy Moomaw, Tim Adkins
5. Carthage Courier
Scott Winfree, Ken Beck
Group II
1. The Daily News, Memphis
Don Wade
Ben Fredrickson
Judges’ Comments: Awesome
collection of stories – a five-tool
writer. Can do it all. Winner in very
close competition
Terri Likens, then-editor of the Roane County News, Kingston, the 201415 Contests Committee chairman, tells the attendees at the 2015 State
Press Contests Awards about the committee’s work.
Press
Stephen Hargis
Best Sports Coverage
Group I
1. Carthage Courier
Scott Winfree, Jennifer Bush
Ben Garrett, Matt Boyatt, LeEtta Boyatt, Lee Slaven
3. Dresden Enterprise
Kenneth Coker
Jeff Ireland
5. Pulaski Citizen
Mark Mize, Cody Rose, Tim
Nave, Andrew Powell, Paul Manke, Wade Neely, Cody Derryberry, Johnny Phelps
Group II
Jefferson City
Dave Gentry, Dale Gentry,
Daniel Burton
2. Weakley County Press,
Martin
Mike Hutchens, Kevin Weaks
Memphis
Geoff Calkins
Sweetwater
Gabriel Garcia, Dimitra Parris,
Tommy Millsaps, Daniel Roberts, Missy Carter, Jerry Denham,
Kevin Kiser, Rusty Vineyard,
Kevin Fritts
Tommy Bryan, Steve Wampler,
John Sloan, Dallus Whitfield
5. Manchester Times
Josh Peterson, Derek Harryman, Jake Kreulen, Zach Birdsong
Group III
Seth Butler, Caleb Chrisman,
Dennis Barker Jr. , Chris Taylor
Judges’ Comments: Very good
paper. Every issue was thorough
and in depth. Stories were pulled
from other places, which draws
from areas outside of the paper’s
coverage area. However, it is well
written and the illustrations and
editing is very well done.
McMinnville
Jeffery Simmons
Zach Birdsong
Chris Siers, Gary Johnson,
Rickey Clardy, Brett Turner
Andy Reed
Group IV
1. The Jackson Sun
Brandon Shields, Craig Thomas, Michael Odom, Josh Lemons
Judges’ Comments: The best by
far. Always something to look
See WINNERS, Page 7
for in every section. Well-written,
full of surprises. Enjoyed going
through it
Darren Reese, Tate Russell,
Wayne Phillips
Craig Delk, Thomas Corhern,
Buddy Pearson
Grant Ramey, Marcus Fitzsimmons, Dargan Southard, Jill
Dickman
Group V
Press
Stephen Hargis
Judges’ Comments: Strong overall
package from start to finish. Quality writing and ideas for coverage.
Always seems to take the next
step.
Memphis
Geoff Calkins, Michael Cohen,
Jason Smith, Kyle Veazey, David
Williams
Sunday Editions
Press
Staff
Judges’ Comments: Impressive
depth and breadth of local coverage. All the bases covered. Dueling
editorial pages are interesting and
fun. Readers must spend a lot of
time with this paper on Sunday.
Memphis
Staff
3. The Jackson Sun
Staff
Staff
5. The Leaf-Chronicle,
Clarksville
Staff
Best Graphics and/or
Illustrations
Group I, II, III
Lee Swets
Zack Owensby, Jana Pastors,
Cat Murphy, Dallus Whitfield,
Ken Beck, Connie Esh
3. The Erwin Record
Staff
Mark Rodgers, Jared Felkins
Drew Wheeler, Lanessa Miller,
Christen Coulon, Sandy Whitaker
Group IV, V
David Crigger
Memphis
Richard Robbins, Jim Weber
3. The Jackson Sun
Jamie Stade, Nancy Broden,
Mallory Hauck, Merry Eccles,
Brian Goins, Martha Stroud
Don Wood
Press
Laura McNutt
Editorials
Group I
5. Hickman County Times,
Centerville
Bradley Martin
Group III
1. The Lebanon Democrat*
Jared Felkins
McMinnville
James Clark
Bill Williams
Susan Campbell
Group IV
Clarksville*
Chris Smith
Judges’ Comments: Sense of
genuine caring stands out in these
editorials.
Robert Norris
Judges’ Comments: The mix of
subject matter was the clincher – all levels of interest covered.
Persuasive arguments and solid
layout.
John M. Jones Jr.
Greg Akers, Ed Hicks, Ryan
Poe
5. The Jackson Sun
Staff
Tracey Wolfe
Jonesborough
Lynn Richardson, Frances
Lamberts, Jack Van Zandt, William Cummings
Group II
1. The Rogersville Review*
Tommy Campbell
Judges’ Comments: Fantastic writing, the best in category. Strong
layout also aided the decision to
award first place to this entry.
Robert Houk
Group V
1. Knoxville News Sentinel*
Staff
Judges’ Comments: Close call
for first place, but editorials just
enough better to edge out Chattanooga.
Press
Staff
Memphis
Jerome Wright
Best Single Editorial
Group I
Staff
1. Carthage Courier*
Eddie West
Editorial staff
Judges’ Comments: Fantastic presentation from writing to layout
to photos!
4. Manchester Times
Josh Peterson, Janet Galyen,
Weldon Payne
Best News
Photograph
Group II
Phil Stauder –
Robertson County Times, Springfield
Sevierville
Jason Davis
1. Independent Herald,
Oneida*
Ben Garrett
3. The Tomahawk, Mountain
City
Lacy Hilliard
First place award
Ben Garrett
Jonesborough
Lynn Richardson
4. The Mirror-Exchange, Milan
Victor Parkins
Huntingdon
Shirley Nanney
Group II
1. The Wilson Post, Lebanon*
Zack Owensby
Amelia Morrison Hipps
Tommy Campbell
Staff
Jefferson City
Dale Gentry
See WINNERS, Page 8
First place award
Best News
Photograph
Group III
James Clark –
Southern Standard, McMinnville
Group III
Sevierville*
Jason Davis
Judges’ Comments: Commendably strong stance on public’s
right to know and opposition to
official secrecy.
McMinnville
James Clark
McMinnville
James Clark
Susan Campbell
David Melson
Group IV
An Enduring Symbol Restoration of historic
structure embodies the vision of Smith
County’s very own & renowned world leader
An industrialized society as we
live in today places a premium
on modernization which often
translates into demolition reigning
supreme over preservation.
Such a philosophy often results in
the hasty casting aside of that which
may be of historical significance
or serve a meaningful economic
purpose.
Historically significant structures
and vistas are often discarded or
eliminated from existence to make
way for modern thoroughfares,
buildings, various developments or
a simple asphalt parking lot.
Pieces of our communities, cities,
counties and nation are forever lost
from viewing and can no longer be
experienced.
Generations who follow can only
research what is lost in our past
from pages of books.
Missing is the often emotional
impressions, ranging from awe inspiring to melancholy, which can be
experienced through witnessing.
Bridges are built, leading to the
downtown areas of cities throughout the country, because of their
economical importance.
The location of the Cordell Hull
Bridge in relation to economics of
our community is self-explanatory
and by all means argue this point
alone as reason enough for the
bridge to have been restored.
However, when analyzing why
the Cordell Hull Bridge should
have been reconstructed, there is
one argument for the structure to
be restored which rises well above
economics—history.
Sometimes eyes are blinded
by modernization and have to be
opened to that which cannot be
seen.
The Cordell Hull Bridge is not another structure which simply links
two river banks.
Through the years, millions of
individuals have crossed the north
and south banks of the Cumberland
River by way of the Cordell Hull
Bridge, viewing the aging structure
simply as a means of crossing a free
flowing body of water.
Numerous buildings, facilities
and agencies in the mid-state area
bear the name of the honorable
Cordell Hull.
However, there is no greater symbol in the state which immortalizes
Tennessee’s greatest statesman than
the Cordell Hull Bridge.
Here is where eyes should be
1. Cleveland Daily Banner*
Rick Norton
2. The Jackson Sun
First place
award
Meeman
Award
Winner
Best Single
Editorial
Group I
Eddie West –
Carthage
Courier
opened.
This state has produced three
presidents and at least one vice
president, in addition to other noted
regional and national leaders.
Cordell Hull’s legacy (body of
work), arguably, rises above that of
these individuals because his contributions to the world continue today
in epic proportions.
By any standards, the millions
of dollars needed to reconstruct the
Cordell Hull Bridge is a substantial
sum of money.
However, years after his death,
we feel this sum pales in comparison to the contributions Cordell
Hull made to our town of Carthage, our county of Smith, our state
of Tennessee and our nation known
as the United States of America and
to the world.
The goal of the United Nations
is to bring countries together to
fight poverty, work for peace and
harmony and enhance relationships
between countries.
Cordell Hull played such an
immense role in creating the United
Nations, Carthage was considered to
be the location for the world agency.
Through his work in helping to
found the United
Nations, Cordell Hull envisioned
an agency which would bridge
countries of the world.
When eyes are opened, a bridge
serves a greater purpose than a simple passage connecting two divided
bodies of land. A bridge fills a void
to connect that which is separated.
The United Nations looks to unite
countries of the world by building
bridges between its governments.
What better symbol to represent
Cordell Hull’s legacy than a bridge,
which he envisioned.
Smith County is home to the
Cordell Hull Dam and the Cordell
Hull Lake, both of which were constructed years after the Tennessee
statesman’s death and named in his
honor.
Steve Coffman
Christine Uthoff
The Cordell Hull Bridge was a
project which the former secretary
of state worked to secure funds to
construct – for our county and our
state.
Like the United Nations, it is an
actual piece of his body of work,
conceived while he was serving under President Franklin D. Roosevelt,
leaving no doubt the Cordell Hull
Bridge should have been restored to
the majestic state it is today.
Since his death, Cordell Hull
has never stopped contributing to
society by his efforts to establish
the United Nations and other works
including the Cordell Hull Bridge,
a vital economic component to this
area.
Some may argue the cost to reconstruct a bridge built in the 1930s
is an act of “throwing good money
after bad” which is not always the
case.
For instance, some states maintain pre-Civil War era bridges,
which remain functional and serve
a vital role in their communities.
Now that the reconstruction has
been completed, the Cordell Hull
Bridge will remain a legacy for its
namesake and continue to have a
positive economic impact on our
community.
James Bennett
See WINNERS, Page 9
Rick Norton
Group V
1. Knoxville News Sentinel*
Staff
Judges’ Comments: Hits hard at
serious public policy issue with
great potential impact on state.
Livingston
Dewain Peek
Group III
Athens
Sevierville
Jason Davis
Jared Felkins
Jonesborough
Jeanne Cope
Paula Brown
Bill Wellborn
Becky Andrews
Xavier Smith
Judges’ Comments: As the mom of
two boys, this one is naturally my
favorite.
Staff
Sevierville
Jason Davis
2. The Courier, Savannah
David Shirley
Press
Clint Cooper
Group IV
Rick Norton
Steve Wildsmith
Bob McMillan
Group I
Doug Fritz
Steve Oden
Judges’ Comments: Best column
submitted in this category by
a long shot. Incredible piece of
journalism.
2. The Gazette, Trenton
Crystal Burns
3. The Tomahawk,
Mountain City
Angie Gambill
4. The Erwin Record
Keith Whitson
Jonesborough
Jack Van Zandt
Group II
Tommy Campbell
Judges’ Comments: A touching
(and gut-wrenching) experience
perfectly relayed through print.
The clear winner in this category.
John M. Jones Jr.
Group V
Sam Venable
Judges’ Comments: The clear
winner. Very nice work
Press
David Cook
Press
Mark Kennedy
Memphis
Sam Venable
Best Personal Humor
Column
Group I
2. Overton County News,
Livingston
Mac McLeod
1. Cannon Courier, Woodbury
Larry Woody
Centerville
Bradley Martin
Judges’ Comments: I couldn’t stop
smiling and laughing while reading this Twerking column. Great
research on Miley.
4. Manchester Times
Josh Peterson
2. The Erwin Record
Keith Whitson
Best News
Photograph
Group IV
Helen Comer –
The Daily News Journal, Murfreesboro
Group II
Press
Pam Sohn
Memphis
Jerome Wright
First place award
3. The LaFollette Press
Joe King
Jefferson City
Dale Gentry
Sweetwater
Melissa Kinton
Group III
Athens
Greg Moses
Judges’ Comments: Amusing
column. Clever way to champion
your community.
McMinnville
James Clark
Athens
Greg Moses
Jeanne Cope
Heather Mullinix
Group IV
Allison Adams
Vanessa Curry
Tony Casey
Jan Hearne
Bob McMillan
Group V
Memphis
David Williams
Memphis
John Beifuss
Press
Mark Kennedy
Press
David Cook
Sam Venable
Best Breaking News
Coverage
Group I
Ben Garrett
See WINNERS, Page 10
First place award
Best News
Photograph
Group V
John Partipilo – The Tennessean, Nashville
What’s left to say?
Another day, another report of a
fatal accident on Highway 109.
This one comes with news that
two Portland High School students
were killed Monday night on their
way home from a high school
bowling match in Gallatin, while
two more were injured.
Kayla M. Perdue and Austin
C. Osborne, both 16 and from
Portland, were killed. Justin L.
Lemmonds Jr., 16, and Caitlyn R.
Taylor, 17, were also injured.
Two short lives, two beating
hearts, two lives of promise and
dreams stopped way, way too soon.
During my short tenure as managing editor at The Wilson Post, I
have made contact with Tennessee
Highway Patrol three times in the
past five weeks related to fatal
automobile accidents on or near
Hwy. 109.
It could be a heartbreaking coincidence. Or it could be something
more.
But the harsh fact is that families
have been ripped apart by the
recent accidents.
Just last week, Deborah Miller,
46, of Murfreesboro, was killed
near the intersection of Hwy. 109
and Academy Lane in Lebanon
when her motorcycle collided with
a pickup truck entering the roadway, launching her off her bike
and into the roadway.
The intersection is one of the
busiest in the county without a
stoplight by many locals’ accounts.
And we agree with them.
And on Oct. 3, just 30 days prior
Fayetteville
Laurie Pearson, Paul Henry
Springfield
Nicole Young, Eric Miller
Thad Mitchell
Group III
Chris Menees
Tracey Wolfe
1. Weakley County Press,
Martin
Brad Gaskins
Judges’ Comments: Exhaustive
reporting set this entry apart. It
was obvious the reporters went
the extra mile to cover every angle
of the story.
Tim Adkins
Judges’ Comments: Solid and
timely reporting of a major bust in
the community.
Jeff Farrell, Jake Old
Jefferson City
Steve Marion
3. Roane County News,
Kingston
Damon Laerance
Sonya Thompson
Victor Parkins
Group II
First place
award
Meeman
Award
Winner
Best Single
Editorial
Group II
Zach
Owensby –
The Wilson
Post
to Monday’s accident, a family of
four was killed in a six-car accident
on I-40 near the Hwy. 109 exit.
Monica, Mike, Stephen and
Joshua Cruce of Kentucky all lost
their life when their Honda Civic
collided with several other cars,
two of which were stopped in the
interstate.
The Tennessee Department of
Transportation has held recent
meetings with locals about their
plans for the Hwy. 109 corridor
only to say that phases of improvements to the highway that connects Wilson and Sumner Counties
have been postponed at the moment due to funding shortfalls.
But the truth of the matter is we
can’t afford to postpone the safety
improvements that need to be
made to one of the most dangerous
stretches of roadway in the state.
This portion of Hwy. 109 has been
the scene of more than 400 accidents over the past calendar year,
which averages out to more than
Andrea Agardy
Sadie Fowler
Group IV
Ken Little, John M. Jones Jr.,
O.J. Early
Judges’ Comments: What an
amazing package of stories
about an airline disaster that
transformed a community!
While 50th anniversary coverage
seldom qualifies as breaking
news, it doesn’t get any newsier
than this collection of stories.
With high-caliber writing, deeply
moving photography and a presentation that spared no newsprint expense, it was a stunning
journalistic achievement. Makes
me want to move to Greenville
just to take the newspaper.
Allie Robinson Gibson, Kevin
Castle, James Shea
one a day.
We can’t afford to wait any
longer on making the changes that
should have been made years ago.
The Miller family of Murfreesboro can’t afford to wait any
longer.
The Cruce family of Kentucky
can’t afford to wait any longer.
The Perdue and Osborne
families of Portland can’t wait any
longer.
And the Portland High community can’t afford to wait any longer.
We, as Wilson County residents,
many who travel that highway
every day, can’t afford to wait any
longer.
Another day, another fatal
accident. If trends persist, those
headlines will keep coming.
Who is going to be next?
Our prayers and thoughts go out
out the families and friends of the
recent fatalities and all of those
who have lost their lives on this
stretch of roadway that is getting
quite the horrible reputation.
Be safe out there, and take care
of each other. If we don’t look out
for one another, no one else sure as
hell will.
We have to become the safety mechanisms by using more
caution and less haste, especially
on such a busy thoroughfare. Don’t
risk the tight gap, and be alert to
what is going on around you for
heaven’s sake.
Simply put: slow down. Be careful. Make it last.
Don’t become another statistic.
James Bennett
Steve Wildsmith, Buzz Trexler,
Wesley Miller
Kristen Buckles, Ken Little,
Sarah Gregory, O.J. Early
Group V
Staff
Judges’ Comments: Well covered.
Moving accounts.
Staff
Press
Claire Wiseman
Press
Mike Pare
Memphis
Jonathan A. Capriel
Best News Reporting
Group I
Ben Garrett
Judges’ Comments: First-rate coverage of the death of a national
public servant with local ties.
Staff did a great job highlighting
Baker’s impact on the community and the nation. Impressively
packaged with good mix of stories
and photos.
Michael Sheffield, Rob Robertson, Ed Hicks
Echo Day, Brian Blackley
Tim Adkins
5. The Moore County News,
Lynchburg
Robert Holman
Group II
Tena Lee
Judges’ Comments: Best writing
out of the entries I reviewed. That
makes it easy for the ready to get
hooked and keep reading
Centerville
Bradley Martin
Amelia Morrison-Hipps, Tommy Bryan, Sabrina Garrett
Springfield
Nicole Young, Cheri Reeves
Stephanie Myers
Group III
Sadie Fowler, John I. Carney
Judges’ Comments: From Shelbyville, Tenn., to Arlington, Va.,
Sadie Fowler and John I. Carney
delivered first-rate coverage when
the remains of an Army infantryman missing in action from World
War II were finally returned home.
The stories in this package were
smart, graceful and inspiring. This
package was the clear first-place
winner in the category.
Chris Menees
Kingston
Damon Lawrance
Jason Reynolds
McMinnville
Duane Sherrill, James Clark
Group IV
1. The Jackson Sun
Jordan Buie, Megan Smith,
Nichole Manna
Judges’ Comments: This is how
to own a story that matters to a
community. All the elements are
here – reportorial skill, clear and
compelling writing, sound news
judgment, enterprise.
Clarksville
Philip Grey
Clarksville
Stephanie Ingersoll
Michael Reneau, Ken Little,
Kristen Buckles, O.J. Early, John
M. Jones Jr.
Brian Graves
Group V
Press
Kevin Hardy, David Cook
Judges’ Comments: A lot of work
went into this, and it shows!
Press
Kendi Anderson
3. The Tennessean, Nashville
Shelley DuBois, Karen Kraft,
Tony Gonzalez
Staff
Nate Rau
Investigative Reporting
Group I
Huntingdon
Shirley Nanney
Sonya Thompson
3. Brownsville States Graphic
Jennifer Willis
4.
Freedom of Information axed
Feds promote openness
from behind a wall
Seven months and 15 days.
That’s how long it took for the
federal government to respond to
a Freedom of Information Act request sent by The Mountain Press
last July regarding a Hatch Act
investigation in Sevier County.
While the story itself was fairly
mild – the sheriff was incorrectly
distributing campaign items on
government property – the implications of this FOIA request are
disturbing.
You see, after waiting 230 days,
The Mountain Press – Sevier
County’s newspaper of record –
was told “No” by the feds.
In a time when the invasion of
the privacy of everyday citizens
– by the government itself – is
routine, what is the government
hiding behind in deny to release
records in the case? You guessed
it – personal privacy.
When the case first came to our
attention nearly a year ago, it was
by way of a photograph or a letter
sent to the sheriff and a complainant. The letter advised the
sheriff that he’d broken the Hatch
Act by offering campaign material
at the sheriff’s department.
The U.S. Office of Special
Counsel essentially let the sheriff
off with a warning, nothing it
shouldn’t happen again.
We couldn’t base a story solely
on the photograph alone. Photos,
after all, can be doctored. So we
called the U.S. Office of Special
Counsel to try and confirm that
they’d sent the letter such a letter.
They balked at divulging the
information. So a Freedom of Information request was filed to get a
copy of the letter.
First place
award
Meeman
Award
Winner
Best Single
Editorial
Group III
Jason Davis
– The
Mountain
Press,
Sevierville
In the meantime, a Knoxville
media outlet that had been sent the
same email broke the story, without getting comment from either of
the parties that were sent the letter
and without any confirmation by
the OSC.
After that, the sheriff confirmed
to us that, yes, he’d been warned
not to continue the practice. He
then supplied The Mountain Press
a copy of his own letter. The paper
also reached the complainant after
the story broke.
Our own story was filed away
and the FOIA request was essentially forgotten. Until a denial
email came Thursday.
“Without written consent, proof
of death, official acknowledgement
of an investigation, or an overriding public interest,” the notice
read, “confirming or denying
the existence of law enforcement
records concerning an individual
could reasonably be expected
to constitute an unwarranted
invasion of personal privacy …
Thus, OSC must decline to confirm
or deny whether the requested
records exist.”
Carroll County News-Leader,
Huntingdon
Shirley Nanney
tion led to an emergency and its
consequence for taxpayers. Very
well done.
Jonesborough
Karen Sells
Springfield
Nicole Young
Group II
1. Manchester Times
Josh Peterson
Judges’ Comments: This was by
far the best investigative report.
The story uses information
obtained through FOI requests or
leaked to the newspaper to show
how officials’ lack of communica-
3. The LaFollette Press
Joe King
Kelly Jordan
Kelly Jordan
Group III
How a duly-elected public
official being sent a letter by the
federal government noting that
he was violating a law is not “an
overriding public interest” is
beyond us.
We’ll appeal the decision,
of course, though only on the
grounds that such information
should be public. The story, by this
point, is old news.
A bill that would help avoid just
such circumstances unanimously
passed the U. S. House of Representatives this February.
“(FOIA requests) remain the
principal vehicle through which
the American people can access
information generated by their government,” Representative Darrell
Issa (R-Calif.) said when introducing the bill last March. “The
… bill is designed to strengthen
transparency by ensuring that the
legislative and executive action to
improve FOIA over the past two
decades is fully implemented by
federal agencies.”
Elijah Cummings, D-Md., a
ranking member of the committee,
agreed.
“This bill strengthens FOIA, our
most important open government
law, and makes clear that the
government should operate with a
presumption of openness and not
one of secrecy,” Cummings said.
Hopefully the appeal goes our
way, and hopefully the bill passes
the Senate and becomes law.
As it stands, when it comes to
transparency, the federal government talks a good game.
In practice, it fails – miserably.
Jared Felkins
Judges’ Comments: An incident
Felkins investigated through
open-record requests showed an
elected official not doing their job
– that’s investigative journalism
Abby Morris-Frye
Jason Reynolds
Jason Reynolds, John I. CarSee WINNERS, Page 12
A line that politics should never cross
Candidates for public office –
regardless of affiliation or influence
– should take great pride in wooing
voters by including glimpses of
past military service in their political campaigns. But all information disseminated
must be accurate. It must never be
embellished. And most importantly, it must be verifiable. Anyone can stake a claim. But
anyone who does should understand the potential repercussions
if it is challenged – whether by a
political opponent, the news media
or by the official record itself. We fear this worst-case scenario
has occurred in our community. E.J. Laughter, a Bradley County
Democrat who is one of three
candidates seeking two 6th District
seats on the Bradley County Commission, has called upon his career
in the U.S. Navy as a personal
selling point for why he should be
elected. His hitch in the Navy is without
question. He served approximately
three years. But, in Laughter’s original
political announcement – which
he submitted to the Cleveland
Daily Banner for publication earlier
this year – the candidate declared
during his stint in the U.S. Navy
he received both the Bronze Star
and Purple Heart. Both are medals
awarded for acts of valor, and the
Purple Heart is given to a soldier
who is inflicted with injuries while
engaged in action against a hostile
enemy. According to official U.S. Navy
records obtained by this newspaper, neither medal was awarded to
Laughter. The candidate, whose name
will appear on the Bradley County
General Election ballot on Aug.
7 as the lone Democrat against
two Republicans – incumbent
Robert Rominger and challenger
Dan Rawls – also claimed to have
served four years in Iraq, Afghanistan and Libya. The same U.S. Navy records,
which are publicly accessible, state
otherwise. According to these
documents, Laughter did not serve
in any of these military venues. The County Commission hopeful also reported in his political
announcement – whose contents
led to hundreds of emails, Face-
ney, Sadie Fowler
McMinnville
Duane Sherrill, James Clark,
Lisa Hobbs
Group IV
First place
award
Meeman
Award
Winner
Best Single
Editorial
Group IV
Rick Norton –
Cleveland
Daily
Banner
book posts and phone calls to our
newspaper from fellow servicemen
from around the world refuting
his claims – that he served as Explosive Ordnance Disposal (EOD)
Technician, 2nd Class, and was
attached to EOD Mobile Unit 2. Again, U.S. Navy records do not
verify Laughter’s account. And
neither do members of EOD MU2. Laughter’s defense is the Navy’s
records are incorrect. In two
interviews with our newspaper
in late March, Laughter even suggested the attacks against him are
anchored in “political motivation”
or are coming from a disgruntled
Navy officer with whom he may
have had contact during his service years. Giving the former serviceman
every benefit of the doubt – which
is a standard practice by our
newspaper because we believe it
adheres to ethics in journalism –
we reminded the U.S. Navy veteran
he should be able to substantiate
each of his claims … from service
years to tours of duty to EOD status
to medals. He agreed with our assessment
and pledged to provide the documentation necessary to verify his
claims. This came in late March. We
published front-page articles in the
April 1 and April 13 editions reminding our readers – and Laughter – that time was passing, and we
still had no further documentation
from the candidate. We continued
to wait. Some 3 1/2 months have elapsed
since our initial interviews with
the candidate and we are still waiting. And now, he won’t answer our
telephone calls nor will he return
our messages. He has provided no
documentation and no one rose to
his defense. Our patience has come to an
end. Early voting will begin July 18
and the traditional Election Day
will follow some three weeks later.
As it was in the Bradley County
Primaries in May, Laughter’s name
will be listed on the ballot. Yet, all references to the candidate – including his political
announcement – apparently have
been removed from the Bradley
County Democratic Party website.
This occurred shortly after our
first two news stories. But the
announcements for Democratic
candidates in the fifth and seventh
districts remain. Since that time, we have left
countless telephone messages for
Democratic Party leaders. Our
intent has been to ask if the local
Party continued to endorse the
County Commission candidate or
distance itself. As with Laughter
himself, our calls to the Party have
gone unanswered and no messages
have been returned. This is not intended to blemish
the collective record of local Democrats. Although the Party struggles in its minority status in our
community, it does include several
familiar and widely respected
Bradley County names and faces. But when a political party – any
party … Dems, GOP, Libertarian,
Tea Party or others – won’t publicly defend one of its own, it is not a
good sign for the candidate. Our newspaper is not in the
business of making political endorsements. We prefer letting the
voters decide. But we do know this. Two of three candidates listed
on the Bradley County General
ballot will be elected to seats representing the Sixth District on the
Bradley County Commission. We do not believe E.J. Laughter
should be one of them. Fraud is one thing. Lying to the
voters is another. And to do either – or both –
in the face of the United States
military, and the American flag it
protects, is an insult to every man
or woman in uniform, alive or
dead, who has ever offered life in
defense of liberty.
1. The Jackson Sun
Tyler Whetstone
Murfreesboro
Michelle Willard
Robert Sorrell
5. The Jackson Sun
Nichole Manna
Clarksville
Stephanie Ingersoll
4. The Daily News Journal,
Group V
Sam Venable
Judges’ Comments: Those who
cannot remember the past are
condemned to repeat it. Efforts
like this – a compelling narrative
about long-ago racial injustice – help make sure that won’t
happen. A veteran journalist plies
his trade with skill and eloquence
and passion.
Joel Spears, Rita Dykes, Jim
Beller
Press
Kevin Hardy
Judges’ Comments: The coverage shows a wide-ranging and
intimate knowledge of the innerworkings of the local business
world and municipal law.
Jamie Satterfield
Press
Judy Walton
Anita Wadhwani
Best Business Coverage
Group I
Michael Sheffield, Ed Hicks,
Ryan Poe
Judges’ Comments: Far and away
the strongest entry in this category. Product is likely a ‘must read’ in
the community served. Well done.
Chattanooga
Tracey Wolfe, Justin Mason,
Bill Jones, Barbara Womack,
Carolynn Elder
4. The Erwin Record
Staff
Sonya Thompson, Bonnie
Fussell, Holly Tong
Group II
Stephanie Myers, Jeremy
Nash, Jeremy Styron
Judges’ Comments: Good allaround reporting on several
business topics, from auto sales
to restaurants to tourism and real
estate. Nice packaging, too.
Josh Cross, Tena Lee, Dessislava Yankova, Cherish Matthews,
Esan Swan, Hollie Deese
Jefferson City
Dale Gentry, Steve Marion,
Katey Hopkins, Kimary Clelland,
Gayle Page
Connie Esh, Sabrina Garrett
Group III
Jared Felkins, Sara McManamy-Johnson, Xavier Smith,
Kimberly Jordan, Pam Wingett
McMinnville
James Clark
John I. Carney, Jason Reynolds, Brian Mosely, Sadie Fowler,
Derrick Hill
Kelly Lapczynski
Duay O’Neil, David Popiel,
Rick Hooper, Tina Pierson, Matt
Winter
Group IV
1. The Jackson Sun
David Thomas, Tyler Whetstone, Jordan Buie
Judges’ Comments: Overall, stories
were good reads. Nice work with
design/ art.
Robert Norris, Melanie Tucker,
Linda Braden Albert
Nathan Baker
Clarksville
Jimmy Settle, Stephanie
Ingersoll, Tavia D. Green
Rick Norton, Christy Armstrong
Group V
Memphis
Kevin McKenzie, Wayne Risher, Sara K. Clarke, Daniel Connolly, Thomas Bailey Jr., Yolanda
Jones
Judges’ Comments: Some terrific
investigative and watchdog journalism is on display here across
a diverse range of topics. This is
reporting that can change the
community.
Press
Staff
Staff
Best Education Reporting
Group I
Jonesborough
Megan McCoy, Karen Sells
Judges’ Comments: Good coverage of topics. Variety of subjects
presented to draw interest.
Duay O’Neil
Group IV
David McGee
Judges’ Comments: Clear winner.
Excellent coverage on an important local issue. The hard work that
went into these stories is apparent.
Nathan Baker, Tony Casey
Randy Moomaw, Tim Adkins
Clarksville
Tavia D. Green, Chris Smith
3. Chester County
Mary Dunbar
4. The Jackson Sun
Nick McFerron, Tajuana Cheshier, David Thomas
Steve Short, Logan Watson,
Victor Parkins
5. Pulaski Citizen
Tracy Ayers
Group II
Stephanie Myers, Jeremy
Nash, Jeremy Styron
Dessislava Yankova, Jennifer
Easton, Cherish Matthews
Springfield
Cheri Reeves, Nicole Young,
Eric Miller
4. The Standard Banner
Jefferson City
Steve Marion, Katey Hopkins,
Dale Gentry
Laurie Everett, Connie Esh,
Sabrina Garrett, Dallus Whitfield, Ken Beck, Amelia Morrison-Hipps
Group III
Jason Reynolds, John I. Carney, Jim Davis
Group V
Megan Boehnke
Press
Kevin Hardy, Tim Omarzu,
David Cobb
Memphis
Jane Roberts
Headline Writing
Group I
1. Pulaski Citizen
Tracy Ayers, Mark Mize
Judges’ Comments: The very best
in a crowded field of creativity.
Echo Day
Sonya Thompson
4. The Erwin Record
Keith Whitson
Victor Parkins, Steve Short
Group II
Judges’ Comments: Loved the
approach to story telling here for
this subject matter.
Jefferson City
David Gentry, Dale Gentry
McMinnville
James Clark, Duane Sherrill,
Lisa Hobbs, Margaret Hobbs
Judges’ Comments: These headlines just stood out to me because
they told the story in a cute way.
Sevierville
Jason Davis, Jeff Farrell
Heather Mullinix
Steve Meadows
Sweetwater
Tommy Millsaps, Jessica Cross,
Michael Thomason, Gabriel
Attorney general’s opinion
shouldn’t have the force of law
State Sen. Frank Niceley,
R-Strawberry Plains, has carved
out a niche for himself as one of
the Legislature’s constitutional
originalists and an advocate for
better civics education in Tennessee.
For example, he has supported
legislation that would give party
caucuses within the Legislature
the authority to appoint candidates
for the U.S. Senate, a nod toward
how senators were elected prior
to the 1913 passage of the 17th
Amendment.
So it is puzzling to find him
sponsoring a bill that would violate
the separation of powers doctrine
and give unprecedented authority
to the state attorney general.
Niceley’s bill would give legal
opinions issued by the attorney
general the force of law, essentially
making the position a “super legislator” and “super judge” all in one.
That is not in the best interests
of the state, nor is it permissible
under the constitution.
The Tennessee constitution
explicitly calls for separation of
state powers into three branches:
legislative, executive and judicial.
The state attorney general is appointed by the state Supreme Court
– for now, at least – and acts as the
state’s lawyer. The attorney general
First place award
Best Single
Editorial
Group V
Staff – Knoxville
News Sentinel
Meeman Award Winner
represents the state in all legal
proceedings and offers his or her
legal advice to state officials upon
request. That advice is non-binding
– that is, it is an opinion, not an
order, and officials are not required
to follow the advice.
Niceley’s bill would change
that. If passed, it would make the
attorney general’s written opinions
binding on state, city and county
governments until a court overturns them or the General Assembly changes the relevant laws.
That would mean that with a
stroke of his pen, Attorney General
Robert E. Cooper Jr. could turn
a bill into law, even one that has
no possibility of passing in the
General Assembly. And even if
the Legislature overturns Cooper’s
opinion by amending the law in
question, Cooper could it to be
unconstitutional.
Such a bizarre arrangement
Group IV
Garcia
Tommy Bryan, Zack Owensby,
Brian Harville, Dallus Whitfield
1. The Jackson Sun
Brandon Shields, David
Thomas
Livingston
Dewain Peek
Judges’ Comments: The three featured heads in this entry show a
wonderful cleverness and playful
creativity that help showcase the
content in an appropriate way.
The best headlines make the reader want to learn more, and that’s
the case here. Excellent work.
Group III
McMinnville
Seth Wright, James Clark
Judges’ Comments: Very creative.
Love the text-talk headline.
Staff
clearly was not the intent of the
framers of the Tennessee constitution, and it obliterates the lines
separating the three branches of
state government.
Niceley’s bill also popped up at
a curious moment, as legislators
contemplate changing the way the
attorney general is elected. Last
year, the Senate wanted to take appointment authority away from the
Supreme Court and turn it over to
a joint legislative committee. The
Senate was scheduled to vote Monday evening on a bill that would
make the office an elected position.
In either case, the matter would
end up having to go to the voters
as a constitutional amendment.
The method of selection does
not need changing, and neither do
the office’s duties. Cooper’s written
opinions can and should carry
great weight as the Legislature
debates various controversial bills.
His office does serve as the state’s
legal counsel, after all.
But it bears repeating that an attorney general’s opinion is advice,
not a decree.
Officials are free to disregard
that advice, and sometimes do, but
to fundamentally alter the role of
the attorney general is misguided.
The principle of the separation of
powers must be maintained.
Judges’ Comments: All three headlines in this entry showcase both a
deep connection with the diverse
subject matter and a skill for
drawing the reader into the story.
They do much more than tell the
reader what to expect. They set
a mood, a tone and establish the
identity of the page.
Press
Staff
Memphis
Robert Garrett, Beth Gooch
Erin Hatfield
Staff
Clarksville
Chris Smith
Susan Campbell
Don Armstrong
Group I
Ken Walker
Kristen Buckles
1. Grainger Today,
Bean Station*
Tracey Wolfe, Barbara Womack
Jared Felkins, Sara McManamy-Johnson
Group V
Karen Grigsby
Public Service
Judges’ Comments: Important
story told in a very approachable
manner. Very good work by staff.
2015 General Excellence Winners
Circulation Group I: Combined
weekly circulation of 5,000 or less (tie)
Circulation Group I: Combined
weekly circulation of 5,000 or less (tie)
Circulation Group II: Combined
weekly circulation of 5,001-15,000
C
M
Y
K
Congratulations to
all of the winners
in this year’s State
Press Contests!
We’re already
looking forward
to receiving your
entries for the 2016
contest!!
Photo submitted by The Wilson Post
Photo by Nick Myers •UT Photographer
Sonya Thompson, editor, The Portland Leader receives the
General Excellence award from Dr. Tonjanita Johnson, vice
president for communications and marketing of the University of Tennessee, at the 2015 awards ceremony.
Staff of The Wilson Post took home the General Excellence
award for Group II. On the front row, from left, are Martha
Miller, Becky Andrews, Zack Owensby, Sabrina Garrett and
Mary Anne Ferrell. On the back row, from left, are Ray Pope,
Tommy Bryan, Brian Harville and Dave Gould. Not pictured
are Dallus Whitfield, Connie Esh, Laurie Everett, Steve
Wampler, John L. Sloan, Debby Mabry, Ken Beck and Cat
Murphy.
C
M
Y
K
2015 General Excellence Winners
Circulation Group III: Combined
Circulation Group IV: Combined
Circulation Group V: Combined
weekly circulation of 200,001 & above
C
M
Y
K
Photo by Kenneth Cummings • The Jackson Sun
Photo submitted by the Southern Standard
The staff of the Southern Standard, McMinnville, took the
General Excellence award for Group III.
The Jackson Sun took the General Excellence award for
Group IV. On the front row, from left, are David Wilson,
Trenee’ Truex, Amy McDaniel, Maranda Faris, Craig Thomas,
Brandon Shields, Kelly South, Josh Lemons and Kenneth
Cummings. On the back row, from left, are Stephen Carroll,
David Thomas, Nathan Handley, Katherine Burgess, Michael
Odom, Steve Coffman, Tyler Whetstone and C.B Schmelter.
Photo submitted by Chattanooga Times Free Press
The staff of the Chattanooga Times Free Press took the
General Excellence award for Group V.
C
M
Y
K
2015 Make-up & Appearance Winners
Circulation Group I:
Independent Herald
Clear winner in an extremely
competitive category.
2. Carthage Courier
Eddie West
3. Chester County
James A. Webb, Mary Dunbar,
Tiffany Kennedy
Huntingdon
Shirley Nanney
Sonya Thompson
Group II
1. The Wilson Post, Lebanon*
Circulation Group II:
The Wilson Post
Connie Esh, Amelia Morrison
Hipps, Zack Owensby, Becky
Andrews, Sabrina Garrett, Laurie
Everett, Dallus Whitfield, Tommy
Bryan, John Butwell, Brian Harville, Jana Pastors
Centerville
Bradley Martin, Claudette
Scales, Teresa Cunningham,
Jennifer Warren
Sweetwater
Jessica Cross, Elizabeth Bowers
Springfield
Eric Miller, Cheri Reeves, Nicole Young
Kelly Jordan, Ron Schaming,
Thad Mitchell, Shelia Bomar
Circulation Group III:
Elizabethton Star
McMinnville
James Clark, Duane Sherrill
Delaney Walker, Rick Norton,
Christy Armstrong
Group V
Group III
1. Shelbyville Times-Gazette*
Sadie Fowler, David Melson,
John I. Carney, Brian Mosely,
Jason Reynolds, Derrick Hill
Athens
Greg Moses
Abby Morris-Frye, Lynn Richardson
Duay O’Neil, Rick Hooper,
Matt Winter
Group IV
1. The Jackson Sun*
Staff
Clarksville
Jimmy Settle, Tavia D. Green,
Philip Grey, Chris Smith
Staff
Sue Legg, Nathan Baker, Gary
Gray
Brian Graves, Stephen Crass,
1. The Tennessean, Nashville*
Tom Wilemon, Shelley Mays,
Adam Tamburin, Brian Haas,
Chas Sisk
Judges’ Comments: Eye-opening
series makes clear the dangers
of meth and the drug’s effect on
society from a number of perspectives. Thorough reporting and
powerful writing.
Memphis
David Waters
Press
Kevin Hardy, Tyler Jett, Claire
Wiseman, Shelly Bradbury, Kendi
Anderson
2015 Make-up & Appearance Winners
Circulation Group IV:
Bristol Herald Courier
Circulation Group V:
The Commercial Appeal
Sam Venable
Best News Photograph
Group I
Sonya Thompson
2. Pulaski Citizen
Tracy Ayers
Sonya Thompson
4. Pulaski Citizen
Tracy Ayers
Jonesborough
Charlie Mauk
Group II
Springfield
Phil Stauder
Judges’ Comments: This is such a
powerful photo. It’s very compelling and moving. I love that it is a
family member of the deceased
being featured at the memorial.
The photo quality is very good
and sharp. The candlelight on her
face is the perfect lighting for the
scene. I also love that she appears
to be looking up at memorial
photo above. I thought the layout
of the entire article was very well
done.
Livingston
Lyndon Johnson
Fayetteville
Paul Henry, Lucy Williams,
Sandy Williams, Laurie Pearson
Dessislava Yankova
Christen Coulon
Group III
McMinnville
James Clark
David Popiel
Brian Mosely
Michael Moser
Curt Habraken
Group IV
Murfreesboro
Helen Comer
Earl Neikirk
Judges’ Comments: The shocked
expression on this woman’s face,
combined with the storm damage
in the background, tells volumes
about what has happened here.
The photographer did a great job
of capturing the moment and filling the frame with all the needed
details. Great job.
3. The Jackson Sun
Megan Smith
Clarksville
Philip Grey
Joy Kimbrough
Group V
John Partipilo
Judges’ Comments: Great light.
Great timing. Great composition.
This is a wonderful example of a
photographer making a stellar
picture at what could have been a
routine assignment.
First place award
Best Feature
Photograph
Group I
Angie Gambill –
The Tomahawk (Mountain City)
4. Carthage Courier
Eddie West
4. The Jackson Sun
Megan Smith
Chattanooga
Ty Kernea
Group II
Dessislava Yankova
Judges’ Comments: This image is
full of emotion and well-framed. It
pulls the viewer in and tells a story
in each expression. Well done. It’s
nice to have the embrace in the
front, the expression in the middle
on the young girl’s face and the
presence of the mother in the
back.
Jana Pastors, Becky Andrews,
Zack Owensby
Springfield
Nicole Young
Dallus Whitfield
Jefferson City
Kimary Clelland
Group V
Memphis
Brad Vest, Kim Coleman, Kyra
Cross, John Sale
Judges’ Comments: This series of
photos was very compelling. The
photographer did a great job of
painting a picture of everyday
life in this community. Very nice
storytelling.
Adam Lau
Saul Young
Memphis
Yalonda James
Press
Doug Strickland
Best Sports Photograph
Group III
Bryce Phillips
Judges’ Comments: I absolutely
love this photo and am glad I
signed up to judge just to be able
to see it.
Memphis
Brad Vest
Paul Efird
John Partipilo
Memphis
Jim Weber
Best Feature Photograph
Group I
1. The Tomahawk,
Mountain City
Angie Gambill
Judges’ Comments: A remarkable incident well captured. Two
photos so different, yet linked,
and just moments apart with no
second chance to get them. Well
done.
2. Pulaski Citizen
Tracy Ayers
Jonesborough
Charlie Mauk
Group I
Sonya Thompson
Kingston
Kaitlin Keane
Judges’ Comments: Terrific photo.
Clear winner. Captures the swimmer at just the right moment, ]so
much detail in the movement of
the water, face visible though still
covered. Well framed, top notch
work.
Sara McManamy-Johnson
2. The Erwin Record
Curtis Carden
Brandon Hicks
Vince Ludovissy
Bobby Reynolds
4. The Erwin Record
Keeli Parkey
Group IV
Ty Kernea
Judges’ Comments: Beautiful,
romantic image of the forest after
snowfall. I bet some readers asked
for copies. Only suggestion to
improve is to crop bottom closer
to lowest deer’s feet. The story is
from the deer to the treetops. Well
done.
5. Chester County
Kim McCormick
Group II
Springfield
Phil Stauder
Jefferson City
Dave Gentry
Clarksville
Robert Smith
Steve Wampler
Earl Neikirk
Jim Beller
Sweetwater
Jerry Denham
Group III
Zach Birdsong
Judges’ Comments: Captured
action real well as the shot had a
lot involved in it. Good job!
Zach Birdsong
Andy Reed
Chris Siers
McMinnville
Bruce Duke
Group IV
Joy Kimbrough
Judges’ Comments: Perfect timing.
Tells the story well by capturing
the most important single moment in the game. Well done and
well played by the editorial staff.
Andre Teague
Murfreesboro
Helen Comer
Darren Reese
5. The Jackson Sun
Kenneth Cummings
Group V
Memphis
Mark Weber, Mike Brown,
Nikki Boertman, Kyle Veazey,
Michael Cohen, Kim Coleman,
John Sale
Judges’ Comments: Phenomenal
entry. The photos told the story
in a powerful way. Only entry to
truly fit what the category was
designed to represent.
Press
Doug Strickland
Press
Dan Henry
Saul Young
Memphis
Mark Weber, Nikki Boertman
Best Special Issue
or Section
Group I
Jonesborough
Lisa Whaley, William Cummings, Charlie Mauk, Bea Casey
First place award
First place award
Best Feature
Photograph
Group II
Dessislava Yankova –
Gallatin News Examiner
Best Feature
Photograph
Group III
Bryce Phillips –
Elizabethton Star
Judges’ Comments: Outstanding
use of the old pages from long
ago. Very interesting to see how
things use to look back in the day.
2. Pulaski Citizen
Tracy Ayers, Cary Jane Malone,
Mark Mize
3. Carthage Courier
Scott Winfree, Jennifer Bush,
Rebecca Watkins, Eddie West,
Bob Stangenberg
4. The Erwin Record
David Sheets, Damaris Higgins,
Curtis Carden
Tim Adkins, Randy Moomaw
Group II
Staff
Fayetteville
Paul Henry, Laurie Pearson, Ryan
Sandmeyer, Carl Nolan , Staff
Jefferson City
Steve Marion, Dave Gentry,
Gayle Page, Kim Cook, Ray
Seabolt, Paul Young, Gary Fowler, Shane Cook
Tommy Bryan, Zack Owensby,
Adam Brown, Carrie Tomlin,
Richie Bouton, Bobbie Kay Bryan, Steve Wampler, Randy Self,
Dallus Whitfield, Cat Murphy,
Mary Anne Ferrell
Tommy Campbell, Joel Spears,
Jim Beller, Freda Turbyfill, Dee
Ann Campbell
Group III
Charity Toombs
Judges’ Comments: The cover
was clean with strong photos and
design throughout the magazine.
Very well put together.
Staff
Mike Hutchens, Kevin Weaks
Danny Peppers, Leslie Sensing, Bill McCutcheon, Glenn
Tanner, Melanie Howard, Karen
Geary, Gay Francisco, Chad Howard, Gaines Hedges
Duay O’Neil, Tina Pierson
Group IV
1. The Jackson Sun
Staff
Judges’ Comments: Visually appealing; broad appeal.
Staff
Staff
Clarksville
Staff
Craig Delk, Thomas Corhern
Group V
Memphis
John Varlas
Judges’ Comments: Great photographs and terrific job of covering
lots of teams in zoned versions of
this edition.
Press
Staff
Staff
Best Website
Group I
Ben Garrett
Judges’ Comments: Good, clean
and attractive site. Best looking
of bunch. Might consider making
At least Elvis never twerked
Folks of my generation (officially
known as Old Fogeys) can recall the
uproar Elvis ignited when he came
out on stage and began gyrating his
pelvis.
My Aunt Maude said it was the
worst public display of a pelvis she’d
ever seen.
I thought about Aunt Maude the
other night when I saw some video
clips of Miley Cyrus’ antics during
a recent concert. Elvis’ pelvis was
nothing, compared to Miley’s booty-grinding.
It’s called twerking. A story that
accompanied the video explained
Miley’s fans have come to expect
a good bit of it during her performances.
I looked up “twerking” and found
several slightly-varying definitions, but a general consensus: “A
bent-over, suggestive shaking of the
buttocks.”
Miley was definitely bent over,
and was, without question, shaking
her buttocks. I suppose it was suggestive, although I guess twerking is
in the eye of the beholder.
Most of us have been twerked
by a plumber when he bent over to
work on a leaky drain trap. We just
never knew what to call it.
A newspaper review of Miley’s
concert said she warmed up the
crowd by shouting, “I wanna hear
some (expletive) noise!”
Right then Aunt Maude would
one story more prominent and
make sure there’s new content at
the top daily.
Staff
Sonya Thompson, Crystal
Borders
4. Bulletin Times, Bolivar
Cristie Maness, Amelia Carlson
5. Cannon Courier, Woodbury
Mike West
Group II
Steve Meadows
Zack Owensby, Cat Murphy,
Tommy Bryan, Sabrina Garrett,
Brian Harville, Ken Beck, Ray
Pope, Mary Anne Ferrell, Dallus
Whitfield, Becky Andrews
Cherish Matthews, Dessislava
Yankova, Josh Cross, Tena Lee,
Jennifer Easton, Brian Dunn
First place award
Best Personal Humor Column
Group I
Larry Woody –
Cannon Courier (Woodbury)
have stormed on-stage and washed
Miss Miley’s mouth out with soap.
The concert featured, and I quote,
“a three-story inflatable dog with
glowing eyes” and a “flying hot
dog that Cyrus rode like a bucking
bronco.”
Who said the arts are dead?
Miley eventually climbed off
her flying wiener and wrapped
up the show with a public-service
announcement to the throng of
squealing teeny-boppers:
“School starts back tomorrow, so
don’t get too drunk tonight.”
Whatever happened to “Study
hard and obey your mom and dad?”
After every Miley Cyrus concert
there is some parent who claims to
be “shocked and alarmed” by what
their kid saw. I’m surprised they’re
surprised. Surely by now Miley’s
reputation precedes her.
Anybody who buys a ticket to a
Miley Cyrus concert knows they aren’t going to get Mel Torme singing
“Moon River.” Instead, they’re going
to get mooned.
One of Miss Cyrus’ more popular
music videos shows her naked,
astraddle a giant wrecking ball,
licking a sledge hammer. Thank
goodness Kate Smith never thought
of that.
The thing that makes Miley’s
raunchy stage antics especially
shocking is that she got her show
biz start as the innocent, fresh-faced
Hannah Montana.
The transformation is stunning.
It’s like bringing home a cute little
tail-wagging puppy and suddenly
she turns into Cujo. And she’s wagging her tail in an entirely different
way.
I suppose it’s just a goofy phase,
and Miley will eventually grow out
of it -- although we’re still saying
the same thing about Willie Nelson,
Madonna and Joe Biden.
It will be interesting to see how
Miley deals with her own kids and
grandkids when the time comes for
her to lay down the law for proper
behavior. What’s a formerly-twerking granny to say? “Hey! Put on
some clothes and get off that wrecking ball right this minute!”
4. Manchester Times
Josh Peterson, John Coffelt,
Jake Kreulen
crisp and clean design, is a breeze
to navigate and brings high-energy, strong local coverage of
sports and news to the people of
Maryville, TN.
Jefferson City
Kim Cook, Dave Gentry
Group III
McMinnville
Jeffery Simmons
John I. Carney, David Melson,
Chris Siers
Heather Mullinix, Caroline
Selby
Clarksville
Alane Megna
Staff
Staff
Group V
Chad Howard
Staff
Staff
Wesley Miller
Judges’ Comments: The Daily
Times, Maryville website has a
Best Feature
Photograph
Group IV
Ty Kernea –
Herald-Citizen (Cookeville)
2. The Jackson Sun
Staff
Memphis
Gary Robinson, Stephanie
Norton, David Royer
Group IV
First place award
Staff
Press
Staff
Michael Williams, Paris Post-Intelligencer, and his wife Evonne check his
cell phone at the TPA State Press Contest awards dinner.
It could be worse, right?
There’s rarely an occasion my
boys and I can have a conversation
when they aren’t trying to talk
over each other or fighting. I never
know where these times of curious
questioning and mostly peaceful
exchanges will lead, but since I
fancy myself a cool parent, nothing
is off limits.
Most of the time it starts off with
a question about something going
on in the world that will likely
never affect them, like Ebola. Sometimes, it can be serious like when a
classmate’s father passed away suddenly or why parents get divorced.
No matter the question, I’m mostly
prepared. *(By prepared I mean
holding my composure long enough
to find my husband and have him
take over the conversation.)
So a few weeks ago my boys and
I were on our way home from a
faraway cross country meet when
my oldest, who had been texting
tirelessly since leaving the meet,
broke the silence and asked, “Have
you ever regretted anything, Mom?”
While I would love nothing more
than to tell my 15-year-old that I’ve
managed to avoid mistakes like:
getting a tattoo at 18 just because I
could, or dating that guy in college
strictly based on looks … again,
because I could. I knew he was just
looking for the human side of his
mom.
“Sure, everyone has.”
“Like what?”
“It might be quicker to tell you
things I haven’t regretted.”
“What about the things you don’t
regret?”
“Marrying your dad, having you
and your brother.”
I tried explaining that regret is
a vehicle for learning, so even if I
regret certain things, I’d never take
them back because even changing
a teeny-tiny detail of a single event
could change everything about our
life and blah, blah, blah. I could tell
he stopped listening after, “vehicle
for learning.” But before I could get
First place award
Group II
Becky Andrews –
The Wilson Post (Lebanon)
to the next obvious question, “Why
are you asking this? What do you
need to tell me? Did you forget to
turn in your Spanish paper??” my
youngest piped up from the back
seat.
“Mom, what if it’s something really bad? Like something you can’t
stop thinking about?”
Suddenly I went from mentally preparing a list of things my
15-year-old will be grounded
for when he admits to what he’s
regretting to… I don’t know what
to think. I mean, he’s the baby, the
one who always makes the right
choices, follows rules, responsible.
Truth be told, I feel safer when he’s
at home with his big brother, not the
other way around.
No matter how much I prodded,
he wouldn’t tell me.
“I can’t, mom. I wish I could get it
out of my head but I can’t.”
At this point I’m panicking.
My God, what has he done? With
Jacob, it’s always something along
the lines of, “I didn’t know leaving
a half-eaten pizza under my bed
would eventually stink and attract
an army of gnats.” That, I was
prepared for.
But whatever my little tender-hearted, dependable, thoughtful
child had on his mind was disturbing enough that he couldn’t
even tell me. By his tone, I fearfully
wondered if his dad and I should
keep track of the squirrel population
in our backyard.
No matter how much I assured
him he could tell me anything, he
wouldn’t budge. I started to panic.
What was so bad that he couldn’t
tell me? This had to be bad.
I was positive that whatever it
was had to be my husband’s fault.
He’s the one that let him watch
“CSI” and that crazy “Omen” movie.
Although my husband would say
it’s all the show tunes and “Sex
and the City” marathons I watched
while pregnant.
Finally, he agreed to tell his big
brother.
By this time, we’d arrived home.
The boys had gone upstairs so
Jackson, the youngest, could tell his
older brother the “secret.”
I tried not to worry. How bad
could it be? Wrong question. It
could be really bad. I’m sure it’s
nothing, right?
After what seemed like an hour,
my oldest ran downstairs, threw a
bag of popcorn into the microwave
and opened the fridge.
“Well, what is it? Tell me from
beginning to end. Your dad is on his
way home. Should we wait for him?
Tell me!”
“What?”
“WHAT IS THAT THING YOUR
BROTHER CAN’T GET OUT OF
HIS HEAD?!!! How bad is it? Does
he need therapy? Tell me now …
unless it’s so bad I need to wait for
Dad to get here?”
With a laugh he said, “Yeah, no
it’s not bad, but he probably will
need therapy.”
“Oh God, what is it? What did he
do?”
“HE didn’t DO anything. He
walked in when you and Dad were
having sex.”
I was right … it WAS worse than
what I thought.
Photos by Nick Myers •UT Photographer
At left, Dr. Tonjanita Johnson, vice
president for communications
and marketing of the University of
Tennessee, presents the first place
award for Best Education Reporting for Group IV to Christine
Uthoff with the Bristol Herald
Courier.
At right, Johnson presents the first
place award for Best Single Feature for Group IV to David LaPrad
with the Hamilton County Herald,
Chattanooga.
First place award
Best Feature
Photograph
Group V
Brad Vest, Kim Coleman, Kyra Cross and John Sale –
The Commercial Appeal (Memphis)
First place award
First place award
First place award
Best Sports
Photograph
Group I
Sonya Thompson –
The Portland Leader
Best Sports
Photograph
Group II
Phil Stauder –
Robertson County Times (Springfield)
Best Sports
Photograph
Group III
Zach Birdsong –
The Tullahoma News
Athens is only dangerous if you’re clumsy
After I avoided two mafia
shootouts, a drive-by shooting, an
explosion, and a riot on my commute to work yesterday – which is
typical, although usually there are
more explosions – I read a story on
my computer that said Athens was
the second most dangerous city in
Tennessee. I couldn’t believe it.
Apparently, a security system
company called Home Security
Shield has published lists of the
most dangerous cities in each state
based on statistics from the Federal
Bureau of Investigation – the same
First place award
Group III
Greg Moses –
The Daily Post-Athenian
statistics the FBI says shouldn’t be
used for comparing cities because
they leave many variables unaccounted for.
The list, which considers both vi-
olent crimes and property crimes in
its rankings – information that isn’t
quite reported the same in all places
– puts Athens in second place in the
state, just behind Crossville. This
makes you wonder what constitutes
a violent crime?
A hit and run by a little old lady
on a motorized cart who’s got to get
to Shoney’s before they close the
breakfast buffet? Wearing seersucker after Labor Day? That’s certainly
an assault on good taste, and I’ve
seen it done around here. Phil
Tuggle ripping your arm out of its
socket while trying to say, “Hello?”
That’s cruel, though not unusual
around here.
Just the other day, I was stabbed
and lost two units of blood, so that
counts – sure, it was a nurse doing
it with a needle for a blood test,
but it still hurt, and charges were
certainly pressed … to me by my
insurance company.
I can understand Crossville
making the list, what with all those
retirees all hopped up on Geritol
and multiple daily naps. Crossville
is where last year an old guy’s
house was robbed while he was
letting this kindly naked woman
swim in his pool.
See MOSES, Page 24
small world: Party of Five
“Seems like you’ve been in the
kitchen all weekend, honey! How
about we all go out to eat tonight?”
“No, thanks.”
“What? Why not?”
“Because we’re a party of five.”
“Excuse me?”
“Because when we go to the
restaurant, the hostess will ask how
many are in our party, and we’re a
party of five.”
“I need a little more information.”
“Okay. So, she’ll peer at her seating chart and then turn around and
scan the crowded dining room, and
then double-check the seating chart,
and then she’ll mark an X on it and
say ‘Follow me.’”
“Go on.”
“So we’ll follow her through
the dining room, single file, past
tables full of happy customers, all
of whom are eating and drinking
and talking and laughing extremely
loudly.
“Eventually we’ll pass right by
an empty table that seats six, and
be directed to take up residence at a
table that seats four.”
“And we’re a party of …”
“Five. We’re a party of five! And
I’ll have to remind her of that because I’m incapable of keeping my
mouth shut. So, I’ll say – excuse me,
but we’re a party of five, and this is
a table for four.”
“I think I know where this is
going.”
“And she’ll say it’s no problem
because she’ll just pull up an extra
chair to accommodate our party of
five at the table that is clearly a table
for four.”
“And you’ll …”
“I’ll remind her that we just
First place award
Best Personal
Humor Column
Group IV
Allison Adams –
The Greeneville Sun
passed an empty table that seats six,
and she’ll walk back to that table
that seats six and drag one of the
chairs from that proportionate table
back to our disproportionate table,
and she’ll proudly say ‘Here you go!’
“And then she’ll step back, which
is a signal to us to commence to
crowd our party of five around a
table suited only for a party of four
or less. Much ado will ensue while
our party of five shuffles and scoots
until we’re finally settled in chairs
that don’t fit around the table …”
“Because it’s a table for a party of
four.”
“Or less. Four or LESS. Not four or
MORE.”
“Right. Would you like me to call
for Chinese takeout?”
“And then I’ll have to point out
to her that we’ll have to take turns
bellying-up because we can’t all get
our chairs scooted up to the dining
table at the same time since it’s
actually a terrible table, ill-suited for
a party of five.
“And I’ll ask her to consider allowing us to move over to the empty
table that seats six, from which she
took a spare chair, and we’ll all look
back toward that table only to see
it’s now occupied by a party of four,
all comfortably bellied-up to the
sprawling table space before them
and casually using the fifth chair as
a coat rack and purse rest.
“And then the hostess will look
back at us and say ‘Oops, that table
is now taken,’ and she’ll hand us
each a menu the size of a Rand McNally Road Atlas while she mumbles something about the specials
and announces that our server for
the evening will be Ethan.”
“How about if I just order a
pizza?”
“Of course we’ll all have to take
turns opening our atlases – I mean
menus – because there isn’t room
enough for all of us to open them at
the same time without putting out
somebody’s eye in the process.”
“Do we have any hot dogs?”
“Then Ethan will come and
attempt to fill our water glasses
without climbing over our party of
five – which will be impossible, of
course – at the same time he introduces himself and recites the list
of the specials for the night, which
he’ll serve to us on plates that are
the size of Mack truck hubcaps that
won’t fit on the table.”
“I don’t know what I was thinking.”
“Because we’re a party of five, for
heaven’s sake!”
“I’m real sorry I brought it up.
Here, I made you a peanut butter
sandwich.”
“Thanks.”
“If you don’t mind me saying
so, I think you might need a little
restaurant therapy.”
“Perhaps you’re right. I’ll call my
therapist on Monday and make a
reservation.”
First place award
Best Sports
Photograph
Group IV
Joy Kimbrough–
The Daily Times (Maryville)
Okra Stufato? Leeks on pizza?
There’s no accounting for taste
This is the golden age of food
in Memphis. I think I read that
on a menu somewhere, between
the Okra Stufato and the Confit of
Quail with Field Pea Succotash, Red
Onion Compote and Toasted Garlic
Glaze.
Or maybe I read it in this very
newspaper, under the byline of our
Jennifer Biggs, as find a food writer
as you’ll find anywhere, a writer of
wit and authority, but is, nonetheless, given to such sentences as,
“Humus with a dollop of tapenade,
tzatziki, olives, almonds and grilled
pita triangles made for a fine start to
a nice lunch,” and “All good except
the quinoa, which was bland and
could have used a few diced vegetables as well as a sprightly dressing.”
To which I say: This golden age
First place award
Best Personal
Humor Column
Group V
David Williams –
The Commercial Appeal
(Memphis)
of food is all well and good, and
maybe even a healthy turn for a
town that is, shall we say, a bit
tubby. But when, exactly, might it
all end? And in the meantime, can I
get a pork-shoulder sandwich so big
and messy that I need to run myself
through a car wash afterward, with
a side of beans and a bag of chips,
and a cold one to drink, while my
mind drifts back to those simple
days of yore before Memphis food
got so fancy, difficult to pronounce,
and well, so colorful.
The bright colors are most bothersome. I miss all the earth tones,
y’all.
Am I alone? Well, there’s my
wife. I’d know her anywhere. And
here come a few more hungry
stragglers, doubtless wondering
how this down-home food town lost
its way, got above its raisin’, started
venerating chefs like they’re power
forwards, and somehow seems to
have confused itself with, I don’t
know, Paris or Florence or, egad,
Nashville, the Athens of the South.
Wait? No more of you? Really? I’m
in the minority here? The rest of you
really like the fact that Memphis –
good ol’ Memphis, a town of basic
food and simple choices (chopped
or pulled? wet or dry?) – has moved
uptown, to the corner of Hoity and
Toity, where there’s some schmancy
restaurant with a silly/pretentious
name on every corner?
Let me get this straight. You really like compressed watermelon and
grilled peaches.
You will, with a straight face,
order leeks on a pizza?
You’re OK with the notion of
gourmet burgers and gourmet tacos
and gourmet hot dogs?
You like going to that one celebrated local eatery – I won’t say its
name but it sort of rhymes with Dog
& Criminy – and order its version of
that staple from my native Kentucky, the Hot Brown, only in this
See WILLIAMS, Page 24
First place award
Best Sports
Photograph
Group V
Mark Weber, Mike Brown, Nikki Boertman, Kyle Veazey, Michael Cohen, Kim Coleman, John Sale –
The Commercial Appeal (Memphis)
‘Ministering to the forlorn at Walmart’
Babe works the midnight shift
at Walmart. He says it’s the best
time to help those in need. He uses
kind words and verses of Scripture.
There are plenty of folks who need
this brand of compassion, including an emotionally bereft widower
who met Babe early in the morning
when he had nowhere to go and no
one with whom to talk about grief
and God.
The Lord led Babe to Walmart,
according to the 80-year-old who
lost his son, granddaughter and wife
in a span of three years. He knows
firsthand the emotional abyss that
comes with the death of a loved one.
“Yes, indeed,” says Babe, his ebony skin gleaming in the fluorescent
lights at the checkout lane where he
serves as cashier and counselor.
“The Lord spoke to me, told me
this is where I needed to be. He said
there were folks here who were
hurting.”
Babe nods his head, birdlike,
toward the cavernous discount complex’s interior. It’s a movement that
emphasizes his point about all-night
stores, gas stations and restaurants.
This is the front-line if you want to
minister to those with troubles.
The few people we can see seem
to wander, as if they have no real
reason to be in Walmart at this time
of night except that is open and
beckons.
Whether you have a shopping list
or not, it’s a place to go when sleep
is impossible and worries weigh
heavy.
I have a six-pack of Sun Drop and
a pack of shoe laces in my hands. It
is embarrassing. I don’t need either
item. I simply want to talk with
MOSES, from Page 22
WILLIAMS, from Page 23
version there is, atop the concoction,
an egg?
Mind you, a traditional Hot
Brown consists of turkey on toast,
under a thick flow of cheese sauce
(think lava, only milk-based), with
bacon (and tomato, if you insist; I’d
rather you didn’t) on top.
It is simple and perfect and about
as healthy as cliff diving. We make
it at our house, and it’s so good my
wife has dubbed it “Hot Damn.”
But there’s not egg involved in the
thing. Repeat: no egg.
I’d like to think, upon dropping
the egg onto the Hot Brown at the
restaurant that shall go unnamed,
but which sort of rhymes with Dog
& Criminy, the chef’s next word
was, “Oops!”
But given the gastronomic trends
in this town, where you foodies
rule while we food cowards cower, I
rather think it was “Voila!”
And you’ve also got Lebanon,
Tenn., on the list, which makes
sense because I’m all the time hearing on the news about the terrorist
bombings in Lebanon.
Manchester, Tenn., made the list,
even though Home Security Shield
posted a picture of Manchester,
N.H., in its place, which makes you
wonder if they actually know the
difference between Tennessee and
New Hampshire and thus know,
by extension, what they’re talking
about.
Chattanooga didn’t make the list.
Odd that a place where the TV news
runs information about shootings
more often than the daily Pick 3
drawing.
First place award
Group I
Steve Oden –
Independent Herald (Oneida)
Babe.
We met when my wife of 40
years – and my sweetheart of 42
years – lay dying at the local hospital. I had to escape the ICU waiting
room or go crazy. So I wound up
at Walmart, a magnet for troubled
souls late at night. Perhaps I was
meant to meet Babe in the express
checkout lane. He’s been helping me
ever since.
“The Lord won’t put more on you
than you can carry,” he reminds
me. “But you got to stand up. You
get through on His strength, not
yours. Listen for His voice. He talks
to me, and he’s talking to you. But
you got to get past feeling sorry and
miserable to hear it.”
Babe speaks reverently of his late
wife and helpmate of five decades.
He believes she is standing near the
Throne of God, an angel in Heaven
like she was on Earth.
His eyes moisten and he adds,
“She talks to me, too, in them quiet
times. You know what I mean?”
I do. In those moments when
something pricks a memory long
forgotten, my departed wife speaks,
reassures and tells me that love
never becomes an empty husk. God
won’t allow it.
Shiny gold buttons and customer
service excellence badges adorn
Babe’s vest, reflecting the twinkle
in his eyes as he bags my purchase
and hands me the plastic sack
sporting the ubiquitous Walmart
emblem.
“Bear up, my man. You and me,
we are lucky. We had them rare
marriages that make folks jealous.
Now they pity us, think we’re sad
and busted up inside. That’s wrong.
Oh, I cry a bit now and then. I
always will, and you will, too. But
when The Lord took my wife’s hand
and led her to Glory, He got a good
woman. I know that. And she’s
waiting for me there. It’s where I am
going, yes sir!”
Babe’s benediction is accompanied by a brilliant smile and
heartfelt handshake, not your usual
experience in the checkout of a
super center. He waves me through
the exit door and turns to the next
soul in need of his particular brand
of ministry.
I don’t know Babe’s church
affiliation, whether he’s Protestant,
Catholic or what. But late at night
when troubles mount and God
sometimes feels distant, I can recommend the checkout lane where a
wizened, elderly man in a blue vest
waits to help.
Of course, all of this is based on
figures from 2012. That certainly
makes me nervous about living here
two years ago, because I have no
clue what’s going to happen when
I walk the streets two years ago. I
could be mugged two years ago,
or even shot for no reason by some
strange person on the street two
years ago.
But, you have to trust this list of
which cities are the most dangerous
since it was published by a company whose bread and butter comes
from selling home security sytems
– in fact, they advertise for $99
home security system installation
at the bottom of the list; talk about
convenient.
That’s like buying diet pills or
exercise equipment that don’t work
from the TV because the guy on
the ad – whose livelihood comes
from peddling diet pills or exercise
equipment that don’t work – says
the stuff works.
Whether your city was on the
list or not, danger happens everywhere. So does good. Many people
in Athens – just like any other city
– wake up each day, go to work, do
something productive, and even
find ways to contribute to their
fellow man through civic functions,
church, and volunteer work.
So, if I’m going to live in one of
the most dangerous cities, I’m sure
glad it’s the friendliness most dangerous city of all, where even the
bad guys will often lend you hand
when you need it.
TPA thanks Amelia Morrison Hipps,
former managing editor of The Tennessee Press,
for preparing this special section.
Dora® cookies and a little girl
First place award
Group III
Greg Moses –
The Daily Post-Athenian
Our nonprofits give
happy endings to
sad beginnings
My friend, Jeff Cunningham,
asked me to deliver the keynote
speech for the Athens Federal
Foundation’s annual luncheon
Wednesday afternoon because either (a) he didn’t know any better
or (b) the first 52 people he asked
had to turn him down – two
probably because they were being
arraigned at that time.
But, what he asked me to speak
about – and the people he asked
me to speak to – are near and dear
to my heart: The men and women
who are the hearts and souls of
our local charitable organizations.
Being a newspaper man, my
currency for transacting business
is stories – all of them true, some
of them actually based in fact.
This means I hear and repeat a
lot of stories. It also means I have
the liability of not being able to
unhear them.
So, when Jeff asked me to
speak about the important role
charitable nonprofits play in our
communities, stories naturally
came to mind.
I thought of John Linder Sr.,
who quit school as a young man
not because he felt he was an
adult and ready for the real world,
but because fate forced him to
become an adult before his time.
His mother’s house had burned
down, and he was forced to trade
in his school books for work
gloves to support his family.
I thought of a man whose name
I never caught but whose story I
won’t soon forget. A man whose
family was so impoverished
when he was growing up that
they didn’t have enough food to
go around to feed everyone at the
table.
The boy asked his mother one
day why she wasn’t eating. She
said she wouldn’t let her kids
starve. This led the boy to start
stealing food just so his mother
could eat, which led to a life
of crime, which led to a prison
sentence.
I thought of the little child
who was too sad to enjoy a story
Dixie Liner was reading to her one
Monday morning in school. When
Dixie asked her what was wrong,
the little girl simply said, “I haven’t eaten in several days.”
I thought of someone on the
opposite end of the age spectrum
– Genia Qualls – who lost two
important things one Fourth of
July: Her husband of 49 years and
her own purpose for living.
I thought of a bathroom with no
floor, and an elderly woman on a
fixed income with no money left
at the end of each month to fix it.
I thought of Delores, a woman
who had two problems that don’t
mix well: A stroke and no insurance to cover treatment.
These are some sad beginnings,
but they all have one thing in
common: Charitable organizations and some amazing people
in our community gave these sad
beginnings happy endings.
John Linder, after losing his job
later in life, was able to obtain his
high school equivalency diploma and find new employment
at 60 because of Adult & Family
Education.
The young child who hadn’t
eaten in several days – and many
others in her same situation – get
the nourishment they need to get
through the weekend without
hunger thanks to the Nourish One
Child program.
The man who’d once stolen to
help others was given a helping
hand himself, and a shelter from
life on the streets, by the Grace
House.
Helping Hands fixed the bathroom floor, the Good Faith Clinic
healed Delores, and, when Genia
was at her lowest point and ready
to give up, the McMinn Senior Activity Center gave her new friends
and a new purpose.
There are many other stories
like these – stories that, had our
charitable organizations not been
there, might not have turned out
so well.
That’s why our nonprofits are
so important: They write better
stories for our communities to tell
through the work they do within
See MOSES, Page 27
She was standing in line in front
of me in the checkout aisle.
Actually, the 3-year-old bundle of
energy in the faded pink shirt was
dancing in the checkout aisle …
dancing, singing, and hopping from
one foot to the other when she saw
the cookies.
The Dora the Explorer® cookies,
don’t you know.
I had to smile because the child
reminded me so much of a sweet
blonde 3-year-old in my own life
who just loves for her “Pow Pow” to
bring her a “prize” of Dora® cookies.
The little sweetie took the pack of
cookies from the shelf and tugged
on her mother’s t-shirt, and with the
biggest smile I have ever seen, said,
“Mama, LOOK! DORA® COOKIES!!!”
Well, that was where her
happiness came to an abrupt end.
Between unloading beer and other
essentials from her cart, Mama
Grinch glared down at the child,
snatched the cookies from her hand,
threw them back on the shelf, and
exploded into what my grandmother used to call a conniption fit.
“You KNOW we can’t afford that
s--- (expletive deleted)!” she yelled,
as the verbal daggers sank deep into
the child’s soul. “YOU are such a
d--- (expletive deleted) pest! Always
wanting s--- (expletive deleted)
we can’t afford! I don’t know why
you were ever born! Want, want,
want! Do I look like I am MADE
of money? Huh???” The cuss-word
laced tirade from the mouth of the
Wicked Witch of the West went on
for several minutes.
The child’s smile and exuberance
quickly turned to tears, as her sweet
little face fell to the floor and her
tiny shoulders jerked with silent
sobs.
I wanted so badly to pick up
that precious baby, wrap my arms
around her and tell her that she is so
very special because she is created
in the image of Jesus, and that He
loves her very much, even if some of
the idiots in her life don’t.
Hey, children can be demanding.
My wife and I raised four of those
critters, and they can try your
patience and test your last nerve,
but not once did we ever make them
PAST WINNERS, from Page 4
Group Four – Chattanooga Times
Free Press
Winners
Group One – The Erwin Record
First place award
Group II
Tommy Campbell –
The Rogersville Review
feel like they were a burden, or say
to them that we wished they had
never been born.
To say something like that to a
child is as cold, cruel, heartless and
inhuman as it gets, and people who
treat children in such a manner do
not deserve to have children, in my
opinion.
Sure, kids need to learn that
happiness is not always “bought” at
the store, but children live in a wonderful fantasy world that we sadly
lose as we grow up, and there’s
nothing at all wrong with shelling
out a buck now and then for really
important stuff. Like Dora® cookies.
“No” is often a #1 word in a
parent’s vocabulary, but “no” can be
said in ways that teaches them the
value of things and doesn’t destroy a
child’s soul.
But getting back to Mad Maxine
in the checkout line. Remember
that 89 cent pack of cookies that
mama “couldn’t afford?” I wondered
about that as I watched her shell out
nearly $75 for the cases of beer and
carton of cigarettes in her shopping
cart.
Judging by her bloodshot eyes
and appearance, it wasn’t hard to
figure out that her “meth” habit was
far more costly.
Out of the $75 that woman spent
on her own habits, there just wasn’t
enough left over for an 89 cent pack
of Dora® cookies for a precious little
girl who ought to be the most important thing in that woman’s life.
There is nothing that makes my
blood boil more than a parent (or
boyfriend or girlfriend of same) who
abuses or neglects a child. I can tell
you from growing up with an alcoholic, verbally abusive father, those
invisible knives hurt and cut just as
deep as physical wounds, and are
much slower to heal, if they ever do.
Children don’t ask to come into
this world. They have no choice in
picking who “mama” and “daddy”
are. They have to take what they
get, for better or worse.
They mimic what they see and
hear in those formative years, so
if a child grows up with criticism,
neglect and abuse, guess what?
There is a high probability that he/
she will grow up to criticize, neglect
and abuse their own spouse and
children.
A kid’s growing up years should
be fun, happy, safe and warm, and
filled with smiles, hugs, pats on
the back and encouragement, not
dodging punches from parents, eating half-spoiled food, wearing dirty
clothes for days on end, or being
screamed at, cursed and sometimes
sexually abused and otherwise mistreated because some of the adults
in their lives are too drunk, dopedup or out of touch with reality to
realize or care that BABIES AND
CHILDREN NEED TO BE CARED
FOR AND LOVED 24/7, and that
food, clothing, shelter and love for
those little ones are not optional and
should take precedence over booze,
crack, meth or pot. It really isn’t that
hard to understand.
Unfortunately, there are many
children today who live in drug-infested dens of pure hell, where
biological contributors of the egg
and sperm care more about their
stupid addictions than their own
flesh and blood.
Maybe I’m just a tender-hearted
softie when it comes to kids, but
I have no respect for or tolerance
of anyone who abuses, neglects,
mistreats and even take the lives of
children. I pray every day for these
little ones, and I hope you will, too.
I just wish I knew where that
little lady in the pink T-shirt with
the sweet smile lived. I would find
a way to leave a sack full of Dora®
cookies at her doorstep.
McMinnville
Nashville
Nashville
Winners
McMinnville
Winners
McMinnville
See PAST WINNERS, Page 26
A little pale girl gives a lesson in life
“Making a hundred friends is not
a miracle. The miracle is to make
a single friend who will stand by
your side even when hundreds are
against you.” — Anonymous From, “Marc and Angel Hack Life” (A blog themed, “Practical Tips for
Productive Living”) ——— Today’s closing tribute to Black
History Month won’t feature the
positive influence on my life of an
African-American friend from a day
gone by. I will write of a friend. I will write of a friend whose path
crossed my own about 47 years ago. Physically, she was as far removed from an African-American
blood line as any around. Her skin
was pale as milk. Her long blonde
hair hung effortlessly to the small of
her back. And her eyes? They were
pearls from an ocean of blue. Thinking back on my friend, I
don’t think she stood even five feet
tall. This was the tiny frame of Brenda
Moss. For someone of such modest
stature, I always felt Brenda had the
biggest heart in all of Collierville
Elementary and Collierville Junior
High schools. In the late 1960s – maybe ‘67 or
‘68 – Brenda was new to our school.
I don’t remember why her family
moved to our tiny town outside
Memphis and I don’t recall from
where they came. Maybe that was the secret be-
PAST WINNERS, from Page 25
Group Four – The Commercial
Appeal, Memphis
2006 General Excellence
Award Winners
Group Two – LaFollette Press
Group Three – The LeafChronicle, Clarksville
Nashville
Award Winners
Group Two – The Standard
Banner, Jefferson City
Group Three – The Daily Herald,
Columbia
Group Four – The Commercial
Appeal, Memphis
In 2008, a fifth division was
added to the State Press Contests for
First place award
Group IV
Rick Norton –
Cleveland Daily Banner
hind Brenda’s willingness later to
befriend our school’s first black student. Brenda was a quiet stranger.
The black student was as well. Her name, too, was Brenda. I
have written of her before – Brenda
Hubbard. A product of court-ordered
desegregation, Brenda Hubbard was
the most courageous student our
school had ever seen. Brenda Moss was the second
bravest. Both I called friend. Each I think
of regularly, and especially during
the February tribute to Black History Month. Almost five decades later,
I thank my lucky stars to have been
a brief part of their lives. Life is filled with challenge. It is
now. It was then in those volatile
‘60s. Brenda Hubbard came to us as
a quiet messenger of Civil Rights.
Brenda Moss came to us as a gift of
fate. None said it then. So I’ll say it
now. Both were Godsends to a people, a place and a time. In those late ‘60s, I never understood the bond that connected our
Brendas at the hip. But this I do
know. Where you saw one, you saw
the other. 2008. All divisions are based upon
total weekly paid circulation, which
meant some dailies and non-dailies
competed in the same division.
The divisions are as follows:
• Group One – Combined weekly
circulation of 5,000 or less
• Group Two – Combined weekly
circulation of 5,001-15,000
• Group Three – Combined
weekly circulation of 15,00150,000
• Group Four – Combined weekly circulation of 50,001-200,000
• Group Five – Combined weekly
circulation of 200,001 and
above
Award Winners
Group Two – Memphis Business
Journal
Group Three – Southern
Standard, McMinnville
Group Four – The Leaf-Chronicle,
Clarksville
Group Five – The Tennessean,
Nashville
They sat together on the school
bus, morning and afternoon. They sat together in class. They sat together in homeroom. They ate lunch together in the
cafeteria, and often were the only
two at the table. They studied together. They laughed together. They shared stories and they
shared their time. Both were mild-mannered,
perhaps even shy. Each needed a
friend. Both found one. I became a buddy to Brenda Moss
because I learned early on she was a
great speller. Previously, I had won
the Collierville 6th Grade Spelling
Bee … even earned a shiny new
half dollar for my efforts. Then
Brenda moved to town. No more
championships for me. No more
half dollars. Brenda was the new
kingpin of words. And it stayed that
way through junior high. I became friends with Brenda
Hubbard … well, because. Like
Brenda Moss, she was quiet. She
was reserved. She kept to herself.
But she would talk … to those who
would approach. It couldn’t have been easy. I
Award Winners
Group Four – The Daily Herald,
Columbia
Group Five – The Commercial
Appeal, Memphis
Award Winners
Group Three – Shelbyville
Times-Gazette
Group Four – The Jackson Sun
Group Five – The Commercial
Appeal, Memphis
Award Winners
figure Collierville Elementary had
several hundred white kids. And
one black. The decision-makers of the day
likely knew what they were doing.
But their actions – no matter how
well-intended – relied on someone
being “first.” In our school, their
“first” was Brenda. As tough as life was for our
school’s first black student, it probably would have been worse had
Brenda Moss not shown the rest of
us that it was OK to be nice. There
was no shame in embracing difference. There was no wrong in doing
what was right. In my way of thinking, Brenda
Moss – at least, at our school –
taught the entire student body the
value of tolerance. Although I was a friend to both, I
never brought up the word, “race.”
To speak of ethnic difference
seemed wrong. Too bad I never
asked anybody why. We shared a few lunches together. We joked about something silly
another student did. We marveled at
somebody’s “A” on the latest test. But in the end, the truest friendship came between the Brendas.
And it was the oddest friendship I
had ever seen. Theirs served as testament to the
strength in diversity. Theirs bridged a river of uncertainty between “us” and “them.” Theirs toppled a great wall of fear,
one brick at a time. To become such friends, one of
these opposites had to take the first
step forward. I believe it was Brenda
Moss, the little pale girl from parts
unknown. And Brenda Hubbard,
the little black girl from another
school, could not have been happier. Change takes time, but change
will never come without a beginning. In those elementary school days
of the late ‘60s, Brenda Moss was
our beginning. I don’t know if she befriended
Brenda Hubbard because she was
new to the school, because she was
alone or just ... because. The reason is not important. The
result is. Thanks to a decision to reach out,
and a willingness to receive, two
Brendas became one. Life is like that. If you give somebody half a
chance, you just might like them. I’ll never forget our Brendas. They
taught me a little more with each
passing day. And I never knew I
was learning. Five decades later, as this cranky
old newspaper editor puts the wrap
on another tribute to Black History
Month, I look back to those days of
a nation’s rebirth. And I smile. Because smiling back are the
memories of two innocent school
girls whose vision gave me cause. “Why?” I always wanted to ask
them. “Why what?” they surely would
have replied. It is then I would have had my
answer.
Nashville
Nashville
Award Winners
Group One – Herald & Tribune,
Jonesborough
Group Two – (a tie) Gallatin News
Examiner and Grainger Today,
Bean Station
Nashville
Award Winners
Group One – Herald & Tribune,
Jonesborough
Group Two – (a tie) The Standard
Banner, Jefferson City, and
Manchester Times
Group Three – Elizabethton Star
Award Winners
Group Two – The LaFollette Press
Group Three – Elizabethton Star
Group Five – Chattanooga Times
Free Press
Award Winners
Group One – (a tie) Independent
Herald, Oneida and The Portland
Leader
Group Two – The Wilson Post,
Lebanon
Group Three – Southern Standard, McMinnville
Group Five – Chattanooga Times
Free Press
RIP: The soul of Pittman Center
PITTMAN CENTER — Over
the past eight decades, much has
changed in this Sevier County hamlet, tucked deep into the verdant
woodlands of Emert’s Cove just
north of Greenbrier.
For one thing, it’s no longer an
unincorporated community but a
full-fledged city (pop. 502) replete
with its own mayor and town hall.
Acres of river bottom fields, at
one time lush with corn, hay and
patchworks of tobacco, have yielded
to developed communities and a
golf course.
Gone also are many of the barns
and country stores once wedged
into crevices of State Highway 416
as it twists, rises and falls along
Middle Prong of the Pigeon River.
In their place are pricey rustic
MOSES, from Page 25
them. They instill the importance of
learning in the young and help the
old learn something new.
They feed those who hunger,
heal those who ache, and shelter
those with nowhere else to turn.
They provide voices for those who
cannot speak themselves and help
to carry those who cannot walk on
their own. They provide first tries
and second chances. They teach
youngsters what it is to be human
and give adults their humanity.
They help people they’ve never
met before and people they may
never see again. They are the
mortar that holds the bricks of our
communities together, because
each day they meet the needs that
would otherwise go unchecked and
untouched. And they do it in such a
way that provides a structure for effective giving by creating umbrellas
mansions, gated entrances, security
cameras and No Trespassing signs.
You see more khaki slacks and
L.L. Bean loafers these days, fewer
faded overalls and high-topped
brogans.
But despite governmental, vocational, economic and social changes, one thing always remained
constant.
Until last Sunday.
When the Rev. Melvin David
Carr, 89, broke his earthly claims,
the soul of Pittman Center died too.
If mountains and trees and rocks
can cry, they did so that sad day.
Yet I’m just as certain there was
a joyous heaven reunion with his
only son Dannie, killed in Vietnam
in 1969, and his beloved Eunice,
wife of 68 years who crossed to the
other side in June.
Melvin and I met half a century
ago through mutual friends and
the medium of outdoors. He was an
extraordinary grouse hunter and
trout fisherman, never hesitate to
share his skills with unschooled
hooligans.
Here was one of the kindest, most
humble people I’ve ever known.
He stood a good 6-3, straight as
a poplar, narrow at the waist,
hickory-bark tanned, Hollywood
handsome, with eyes that twinkled,
silver hair that curled around his
ears and a warm smile welded to
his lips. When Melvin spoke, it was
always softly, with genuine concern.
Many a warrior has found salvation during the heat of battle. Often
under which change can happen.
It can be daunting and even
counterproductive when individual
people want to help with an issue
but have no vehicle in which to do
it effectively – think of Don Quixote
chasing windmills.
Through their mission-based
organizational structures, our local
nonprofits provide two important
vehicles: One for sharing problems
with the greater community, and
another for allowing the community
to come together to solve them.
I can’t build a house, for instance,
but I can contribute money and I
can serve on a board. So, Habitat
For Humanity some years ago gave
me that vehicle for making change.
Of course, the fact I didn’t know
the difference between an Allen
wrench and a Phillips-head didn’t
stop my friend, Walter Payne,
from getting me to come out one
Saturday to try to lend a hand on a
Habitat house, in spite of my insistence that my abilities for serving on
the board were limited to being able
to say “yea” or “nay.”
It didn’t go well. It was my first
time setting a toilet. I don’t know if
you’ve ever lifted a toilet before, but
they come in two weights: “Very
Heavy” and “Get a Crane.” As I was
helping to carry the toilet, the guy
helping me asked, “Have you ever
set a toilet before?” I replied, “I’ve
set on one.” Don’t ever joke with
someone who’s holding the other
end of a toilet unless you don’t mind
losing a toe.
Walter later decided my talents
would be put to better use operating
a nail gun. A nail gun. A bleepbleep-bleep nail gun. Two words
in that phrase are key: Nail, as in a
sharp-tipped piece of metal that can
kill you, and gun, a weapon that
shoots sharp-tipped pieces of metal
that can kill you.
Walter sent me with this nail
gun – which was more of a nail
howitzer – up a creaky ladder into
the rafters of the front porch roof
to shore up some sagging boards
(I’m guessing he looked at my belt
and waistline and figured I knew
a thing or two about shoring up
sagging things.)
I did learn how to operate a nail
gun, though. Oddly, it’s not a skill
I’ve ever been called upon to utilize
since. You place the board wherever
you want it, aim carefully, turn
your head 180 degrees so you aren’t
forced to watch, say a brief but
sincere prayer, and pull the trigger.
You also want to make sure you’re
wearing steel-toed boots and an
adult diaper.
I can’t build a house with a nail
gun, but I can provide the nails. I
can’t feed the hundreds of children
who hunger in our community, but
I can pack a bag of food for one. I
First place award
Group V
Sam Venable –
Knoxville News Sentinel
Photos by Nick Myers • UT Photographer
At left, Dr. Tonjanita Johnson, vice
president for communications
and marketing of the University of
Tennessee, presents the first place
award for Best Business Coverage
for Group I to Michael Sheffield
with the Memphis Business
Journal.
At right, Johnson presents the
first place award for Best Sports
Writing for Group IV to Seth Butler
with The Newport Plain Talk.
the condition is temporary. Not so in
this case.
Still a teenager, Melvin fought
in some of the fiercest naval
campaigns of World War II. On
particular day, as Japanese aircraft
zeroed in on the USS Pennsylvania,
he pledged his life to the Lord “if
You’ll let me see my family and the
mountains again.”
Done. And done.
Throughout his Baptist ministry, Melvin pastored 10 churches
– preaching, marrying, burying,
caring, living every minute as witness to The Word.
You’ve heard the term “a true
man of God?” I have, and I don’t use
it often or lightly.
Here was one.
can’t heal the sick with medicine,
but I can register a patient or sweep
the floors when the clinic’s closed. I
can’t give a child better parents, but
I can give that child a voice.
I can’t change what has been,
but I can change what will be. But
it would be hard to do without the
work our nonprofits do each and
every day to provide that vehicle
for change, to provide that outlet
that lets others know the needs and
allows them to give of their varying
levels of time, talent, and treasure to
meet those needs.
My friend, Joel Riley, recently
said, “A life without service is a life
without purpose.”
Our community is blessed with
many different organizations and
people whose primary purpose is
service.
That’s their story. It’s a great
story. Let’s support them as they
continue to tell it.
2015 Headline Writing Winners
Circulation Group I:
Pulaski Citizen
Circulation Group II:
The Standard Banner
(Jefferson City)
Circulation Group III:
Southern Standard
(McMinnville)
Judges’ Comments: These headlines just stood out to me
because they told the story in a cute way.
Judges’ Comments: Very creative. Love the text-talk headline.
C
M
Y
K
Judges’ Comments: The very best in a crowded field of creativity.
Circulation Group IV:
The Jackson Sun
Judges’ Comments: The
three featured heads
in this entry show a
wonderful cleverness
and playful creativity
that help showcase the
content in an appropriate way. The best headlines make the reader
want to learn more,
and that’s the case here.
Excellent work.
Circulation Group V:
The Tennessean (Nashville)
Judges’ Comments: All three headlines in this entry showcase both a
deep connection with the diverse subject matter and a skill for drawing the reader into the story. They do much more than tell the reader
what to expect. They set a mood, a tone and establish the identity of
the page.
C
M
Y
K

State Press Contests Winners 2015 Section

Transcription

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